Race to the Top
by Wyolin
Summary: Saitama's life is significantly changed by a split second decision, bringing to light a boy who has the power to challenge the best.
1. The Subterranean Captive

Saitama stared dully at the white flag the subterraneans left behind in their hasty retreat. 'Sorry!' The message read, written on the flag.

Saitama was disappointed. His dream left his heart pumping and adrenaline coursing through his veins, but in reality the Subterraneans were just a lame bunch of weaklings. His dream had given what he had lacked for years - a real fight: one where the enemies didn't just tickle him. In his dream, the Subterraneans had actually drawn blood. Blood. Something Saitama hadn't seen on him since he had gone bald. But reality, as always, was a giant let-down. He sighed.

However, Saitama, having nothing else to do at the moment, was slightly curious about where the Subterraneans had disappeared to. He walked over to the hole they had dug and peered into it. It seemed quite deep - he couldn't see the bottom of it. He briefly considered jumping in just to see what was going on in there.

"Well I've got nothing else to do, so why not," he thought, forgetting that he only had pyjamas on. "Maybe that big subterranean guy's actually in there." Saitama hopped into the hole, half hoping for a good fight.

As he fell down the hole, he noticed that the air was gradually getting hotter and hotter to the point where a small sweat was beginning to break out across Saitama's face. But he didn't care, he had trained under the sweltering heat of summer without air conditioning after all.

As the air whizzed by, he began to be able to see the ground below. As it was nearing, it seemed as if his surroundings were bathed in a dim red light. At this point, Saitama had to acknowledge that it was indeed quite hot, the temperature had reached the point where it felt like he was inside a baking hot furnace. The heat of the air seemed to press against him like a vice, causing his thin pyjamas to stick to his skin somewhat uncomfortably. But he didn't notice - his mind was conditioned against the harshest of temperatures.

Saitama touched down on the ground, his landing displacing a large amount of dust. He had landed in a massive cavern, kilometres wide, with great glowing red lamps in regular intervals along the walls and hanging off large chains off the ceiling giving the whole cavern a reddish hue.

"This reminds me of a video game I played when I was younger..." Saitama thought absent-mindedly as he scanned the area.

What caught his attention, however, was the fact that despite the number of footprints he could see on the ground, there was no sign of any living being anywhere in the cavern. They seemed to have left in a hurry.

"Hmm… there's no one around… a bit disappointing..."

Suddenly, he heard a small cry echoing from a small cave entrance on one of the walls of the cavern.

"Is someone there?" Saitama shouted into the general direction of the cry.

There was a cry again, from the same location.

"Might as well check it out," he thought.

Saitama sprinted down down the tunnel with a super humanly fast pace. Who in their right mind would be here? Why did the voice sound so young?

When he emerged at the other end of the tunnel, he was greeted by an unexpected sight - a boy was chained against the wall - there were shackles around all his limbs, restricting his movement significantly. The boy lay on the floor, limited by his chains to an awkward sprawl. He was stick thin - Saitama could clearly see his bones, although there did seem to be a hint of muscle on him. His black hair had overgrown, covering his head in a black blanket. His skin was pale, unnaturally pale. It looked like this boy had been here for a large amount of time and was on his last legs. What worried Saitama was the boy's lack of sweat - he was bone dry where Saitama was drenched in sweat. The boy had run out of water to sweat. This sparked pity in Saitama's dulled soul. He felt compelled to help.

When the boy saw Saitama, his head slowly turned, revealing a glimmer of hope seeping into a sharp yet hollow youthful face. He feebly reached up with a trembling hand and said in a weak voice: "help me…"

Saitama sprinted to the boy and broke his chains as easily as snapping a twig. He cradled the boy in his arms, noting his pale, sunken face. He didn't have long to live. If Saitama hadn't arrived, the boy would be dead within the next few days.

"I'll get you out of here," he said, but the boy was already unconscious.

Saitama jogged out into the vast cavern he landed in, frowning. The boy in his arms lay limp and unmoving, chest rising and falling shallowly, but Saitama didn't really seem to notice. Instead he was preoccupied, gazing at a series of giant toeless footsteps imprinted in the ground of the cavern. What could have caused those? Something very heavy must have passed by recently for Saitama hadn't seen these giant imprints when he landed initially, but somehow he hadn't felt the tremors which the being must have caused as it walked.

Whatever. Saitama had not the time nor the interest to examine this further. Without hesitation, he launched himself upwards into the sunlight.

* * *

The boy felt odd. Instead of the roasting heat he usually felt, he was feeling… Cool? In comfort? Instead of the hardness of the shackles he always wore, he felt an unnerving absence. The sweltering heat he was used to feeling was gone, he hadn't felt like in what seemed like forever.

"Hey...hey…" he heard a voice say.

Still half asleep, the boy drawled, "Whaaat? Come to leach my power again, you stupid moles?"

"What?"

Accompanying the surprised exclamation was a faint aroma of what smelled like lobster. Lobster! The boy's eyes shot open. His hungry eyes immediately fixed on the bowl Saitama held.

"Gimme!" he said and snatched the bowl from Saitama's hands.

The bald hero stared at his hands in shock. He hadn't seen anyone be able to snatch something from his hands before, but then again, he didn't hang around people often.

His gaze returned to the boy. He was downing the bowl of lobster soup like he hadn't had a meal in a year, which was probably not far from the truth considering how skinny he was.

When the boy had finished demolishing the soup (which was not a small quantity), he seemed reinvigorated. His skin had already started turning into a more natural tone, his eyes had a new spark of life that he was lacking before. The boy was making an amazingly quick recovery considering he had been in a cave for whoever knows how long. The boy cast around at his surroundings. He noticed that he was in a tiny apartment, it was quite cramped, but it was infinitely better than the cave. A strange bald man was sitting next to him on a swivel chair, observing his actions with a semi-bored face. The shackles and chains he usually wore lying in a heap on the floor nearby.

"Who are you? Where am I?" he enquired, looking around. His vision locked onto Saitama's head. "Why are you bald?"

Saitama groaned inwardly. Why does everyone ask him why he was bald? It's so annoying! What's so strange about his baldness?

"I'm Saitama, you're in my apartment, lay off my baldness!"

"Saitama… huh. Never heard of you. Your apartment's tiny. You're strong though, you broke my chains like it was nothing. You seem like a good guy as well, your soup was delicious!" the boy said eagerly, smiling as he rapidly spoke.

Saitama felt bombarded by this boy's words.

"Okay," he replied simply. He wore his trademark blank face. Suddenly, it turned into one of confusion as he realised he didn't even know the boy's name. "What's your name?"

"I'm Holocho," he responded uncertainly, as if he had trouble remembering. "You're gonna ask me what I was doing in that cave right?"

Saitama nodded slowly.

"Can you give me a short answer-"

"Well it's quite a story. When I was small, I was often bullied by other kids because of my height. I was quite short then, you see. One day, a bully pushed me too far. Literally. He pushed me into a river. I didn't know how to swim! When I managed to escape the river, I vowed to take revenge. People underestimate me due to my size, but I'll show them that size isn't everything!"

Saitama looking strained, tried unsuccessfully to break into Holocho's monologue of sorts.

"So I trained day and night for a whole year. I trained and trained. I know this sounds like me being obsessive, but trust me, if you've been bullied for years, you would do the same. So after the year of training, I was still being bullied during that year by the way, and my bullies are pretty strong, I gathered up the courage to stand up to the bullies and beat them up. I beat them up so badly they had to go to the hospital! After that I became feared by all the other bullies in my town and was never bullied again! But one day, when I was walking home from school through the woods, a bunch of strange moles came up to me and said-"

"KEEP YOUR STORIES TO 20 WORDS OR LESS, DAMMIT!" Saitama yelled. This kid was definitely too talkative! He looked only around 12 or 13 but damn, he had a lot to say. How could he have recovered so much from a simple lobster soup? Taking a look at him now, he was almost a completely different person from who he was before. His posture was better, he was livelier, overall, he seemed to undergo days of recovery in merely five minutes.

"Woah! Sorry!" Holocho exclaimed. "If I had known-"

"Just tell me a short version." Saitama said, irritated.

"I... was bullied, trained myself to beat my bullies up, got tricked by moles and was trapped in the cave," Holocho said concisely. "Precisely 20 words!"

"Okay," Saitama said, satisfied. Then he noticed something odd about the boy's little story. "How did you get tricked by moles? Aren't they the small, fuzzy creatures that dig holes?"

Holocho winced slightly. "I was as surprised as you when they started talking. But they gave me some really good chocolates But after I ate a few, I fell asleep and ended up inside that cave you found me in."

Saitama stared at Holocho blankly. "They talked? Are you sure you weren't hallucinating?"

"Hey! I-"

Saitama raised his hand to stop him from speaking. He had something more important to deal with.

A dull whine permeated the air. His ultimate enemy, the mosquito, had returned.

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed reading. Constructive criticism would be welcome, this being my first fanfiction I've written. (I've gone over this chapter and edited it slightly in case anyone notices anything weird.)


	2. Mosquitoes

A dull whine permeated the air. Saitama located the source of the sound - outside, in his balcony. He sprang up and rushed into the balcony. Holocho looked on, shocked. He thought,

"He moved that fast just to squash a mosquito? Saitama must have bad blood with them."

He giggled. "Bad blood."

Meanwhile, Saitama was getting serious. He stood perfectly still, then sprang into the air, clapping his hands together at where the mosquito was, creating a loud thud and a shockwave that shook the air. It was not enough. The mosquito continued living, despite the amazing speed and accuracy Saitama had displayed. Saitama then jumped again, moving too fast for the human eye to see, reaching out his hand to grab the mosquito and squash it. The mosquito escaped yet again. Saitama jumped again, and again, and again, trying in vain to squash the bug.

Holocho stood at the doorway, watching Saitama's futile attempts to vanquish the mosquito.

"I better help this guy before he bursts a blood vessel trying to kill that bug," he thought as he went inside to search for bug spray.

"Aha, the spray!" he exclaimed after rummaging through Saitama's drawers. "Now to kill that bug…" he tailed off, staring at Saitama.

"Damn mosquitoes!" Saitama snarled, gritting his teeth together. Blood vessels bulging and eyes bloodshot, he was at the end of his tether. How dare the mosquito still live?

"Saitama!" Holocho called.

"What?" Saitama responded in a strained voice.

Holocho jumped onto the balcony and landed, feet apart, one hand on hip and another holding the bug spray to Saitama's face.

"I'll take care of this!" he said enthusiastically.

Holocho then jumped into the air at superhuman speeds flying towards the mosquito, imitating the caped baldy, and pressed down on the spray. He then landed in a powerful, triumphant pose and shouted: "All done!"

"Ah… thank you…" Saitama said, relieved. He had forgotten about the spray.

A dull whine floated through the air.

Holocho's face instantly morphed from a joyous expression to a shocked expression to a furious expression.

"I'm… gonna…"

He was interrupted by a scream of rage. Saitama was beyond angry. He snatched the spray can from Holocho and leaped over the balcony, following the mosquito, leaving a shocked Holocho is his wake.

"Saitama! Wait up!"

* * *

An unnatural, writhing black cloud filled the streets of Z city, surrounding a strange feminine shape floating above, forming a great ball of darkness. A young man with blond hair, orange irises and a body made of a dark grey metal ran up towards the churning ball, a serious expression on his face.

"So many," he thought as he gazed at the ball of mosquitoes. "If she's been collecting blood from the whole town and beyond, then it may not just be a food source for her."

He raised his only remaining arm. Bright orange and yellow light flowed into his palm, accompanied by a mechanical whir that rose gradually in pitch.

"I should put an end to this as soon as possible."

Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by and irritated shout:

"Get back here, dammit!"

The cyborg turned around to see a strange, young bald man chasing a mosquito spraying a bug spray at it with another small, skinny child tailing him. They both seemed extremely irritated and angry.

"You and I aren't done yet!" the bald man shouted.

"Kill it! Kill it!" the child yelled, raising a fist in the air.

"What's with them two?" the cyborg thought, perplexed.

"It's in my mouth! Pft! Pft! You little...!" the bald man spat. Suddenly, the pair noticed the giant ball of mosquitos in the sky.

"Huh? What's that squirming over there?" the bald man said.

"It's mosquitoes!?" the child exclaimed. An expression of horror and disgust formed on their faces.

"You two. Evacuate now." the cyborg ordered. "That swarm is conscious. If it senses you, it will immediately attack."

"Seriously?" the bald man said, a fearful expression on his face.

However, the child had a different approach. "Kill it! Destroy the mosquitoes before I go up there and squash them one by one!" he hollered, evidently very angry. "Nothing escapes my fist!"

However, before the cyborg could respond, an unnatural laugh emanated from inside the swarm. A demonic pair of red eyes and a mad grin appeared in the swarm. The ball of mosquitoes rapidly expanded in size, smothering the streets below, causing windows to crack and shatter and buildings to tip due to the sheer volume of mosquitoes pressing against them.

Amidst the chaos, the cyborg calmly spoke.

"Incinerate."

Suddenly, sparks of lightning appeared, followed by a massive burst of flame from the cyborg's body. The flame leaped from mosquito to mosquito, incinerating the swarm and causing a large explosion to rock the streets of City Z.

When the smoke cleared, it revealed that the surrounding area had been charred black and sooty by the cyborg's flame. Ash from the incinerated bodies of mosquitoes drifted through the air.

"Since you spoke, I thought you would have at least human-level intelligence." the cyborg stated, matter-of-factly. "But you were just a bug. You brought all the mosquitoes into one, easy-to-burn swarm. When I spotted you, I confirmed there were no living beings within 500 meters. so I should have been free to fire away."

His eyes widened slightly in fear. "Wait, the pair might have-"

"Man, you saved me. You're amazing." the bald man goshed, an admiring expression on his face. "What was that just now? You totally made them bug out! Bah-dum-tsh."

A groan floated through the air above them. The boy dropped down from a nearby tower and landed with a crouch. The boy had slightly singed clothes, but other than that he was unscathed. He must have somehow jumped onto a tall building nearby to escape the flame. What was weird, the cyborg observed, was that the boy's clothes seemed more like rags.

"Saitama! That was a rubbish pun!" the boy moaned. "You really… suck! Wait, where are your clothes?! Ew!"

The boy hurriedly looked away.

The cyborg was in shock. The two random civilians had been able to survive his flames like it was nothing.

A high, taunting laugh pierced the air. In front of the trio, a pink and purple female with long, wavy hair, claws for feet and a pair of large, fast, buzzing mosquito wings floated down toward them.

"Idiot!" she goaded. "I no longer need the little -"

"Who is that weird pink bug lady up there?" the boy whined. "She looks like a mosquito. Ugh."

"Quiet!" the cyborg shouted, but it was too late.

"YOU!" the female cried. "How dare you say that, weakling! Die!"

She charged forward at an unbelievable speed, disappearing from the cyborg's point of view. She then reappeared and savagely slashed at the skinny boy, causing the buildings behind him to be cut and destroyed by the shockwaves produced. The cyborg gasped in shock and fear, thinking the worst. Saitama looked on dully.

However, she had missed. The boy had disappeared.

The boy blurred behind the woman, and hit her with a vicious backhand, causing her to skid across the ground.

"You're easier to hit than an actual mosquito," the boy jeered.

"That stung a little," the purple creature shot back.

With a grunt of annoyance, the boy leapt towards his enemy, striking her with quick, successive blows to the head. However, his blows crashed against the mosquito queen's blocks. Seeing the ineffectiveness of his punches, the boy kicked her in the abdomen with a powerful kick, sending her flying upwards towards the sky. Deep purple bruises were forming on the mosquito girl.

Holocho then launched himself at the mosquito queen with fists flying at her, but his punches all hit empty air.

"You fool!" she shrieked. "I am superior in the air!"

"I don't care!" the boy yelled back, increasing the speed of his punches, but to no avail - the monster zipped around the blows with her superior agility.

Genos looked up in amazement. The mosquito queen's speed was too fast to follow, but what was more surprising was the force behind the skinny boy's punches. They were stunningly fast, despite not landing, each blow was creating large shockwaves in the air, shattering glass in the surrounding buildings. He was sure that if he were to fight him, he would be turned into modern art faster than he could blink.

Mosquito Girl began counterattacking. She zipped around Holocho's thin body, striking where he wasn't facing, knocking him about in the air. Holocho struggled to respond but only was able to block a few slashes. Red lines of blood were emerging from slash wounds strewn across his body. Pain flickered across the boy's face, it was clear that he couldn't take much more of this. It didn't help that he had just been rescued from being half starved for several months.

When one of Mosquito Girl's slashes landed near his torso, Holocho quickly grabbed hold of her arm. Her eyes widened, but before she could do anything, he whirled her around and tossed her towards the ground with all his strength, creating a large crater in the charred road. Holocho then dropped onto the ground and charged at the fallen monster. He gritted his teeth and yelled a pure roar of rage, and punched the mosquito queen's head as hard as he could with his wiry frame. The dazed Mosquito Girl quickly formed a cross guard with her arms, but Holocho's punch crashed through her guard and brutally impacted her head, causing her to cry out in pain. She then fell backwards, unmoving.

"She started it!" Holocho said, panting, in response to Genos's shocked expression. He turned his back on the monster and walked away.

Suddenly, the minister's eyes shot open and a crazy grin appeared on her face. She lunged towards Holocho, laughing a sinister laugh.

"Boy…!" Genos started, but was interrupted by a blow of tremendous force. Genos's jaw dropped. In the place where the monster once stood was Saitama's fist. On the wall directly in front of him was a large splatter of blood. Saitama had punched the monster with so much force she turned into a fine mush on the wall.

"Mosquitoes… suck!"

Holocho groaned in outrage. "Saitama, you stole my pun!"

The naked man chuckled. "Couldn't resist."

"Ugh. Whatever. Can we go back to yours? I'm hungry!" Holocho whined.

"But you just had lobster- hey! Wait up! You don't know where the food is!" He shouted at Holocho who was running to Saitama's house. He grumbled and ran after the kid.

Genos observed the pair with a shocked expression on his face. How could they be so strong? The child was barely a teenager but was stronger and faster than 1000 men put together. The bald man's strength was too large to comprehend. Genos decided that he must investigate how they got this strong, but that would come after he had his arm repaired.

* * *

A/N: Mosquitoes. Everyone hates them. Saitama, however, seems to have a deeper hatred of them than most. Also, I couldn't resist the puns, sorry!

* * *

Review:

Saitauthor: Thank you so much for your kind words! It really encouraged me to write more.


	3. Friendly Messengers

"Mosquito Girl was defeated? With one punch you say? Well, she was merely a prototype, after all."

A computer whirred and buzzed, displaying several images of City Z, Holocho's fight with Mosquito Girl and Saitama's slap.

"Why is he naked? Why is the boy wearing rags?"

"Unknown."

"Whatever. They'll both make excellent specimens. We shall study their physiology - by force if necessary. The man is preferred, but bring back either one. I don't care." A sinister smile grew on the man's face. "Send messengers and invite them here to our 'House of Evolution.'"

* * *

Genos stood outside Saitama's apartment a week after the fight with Mosquito Girl. His arm had been repaired quickly, but he had spent a few days observing the pair in order to gain an insight on how they got so powerful. Perhaps they were cyborgs, like him, but with better parts? Genos was determined to find out the source behind their power.

He took a deep breath, then called: "Saitama!"

After a brief moment of silence, the door opened. However, instead of Saitama opening the door, the child did instead.

"Heh, sorry, Mister Saitama isn't in right now," Holocho said. He looked up at Genos's tall blonde form. "Oh! It's you! The cyborg guy from that mosquito fight last week!"

"Yes. I am the cyborg Genos. I fought the mosquito monster with you last week."

"Ah, your name is Genos. Come in!" the boy said, smiling.

As Genos entered, he noticed that the boy was substantially less skinny than before, he could actually see well defined muscles on the boy. His clothes were also much better than before, instead of the rags he wore at the fight, Holocho was wearing a normal yellow t-shirts and red shorts.

Holocho noticed Genos looking at his clothes and smirked.

"They're a lot better than those rags huh?" he said.

Genos nodded in agreement. "May I ask, why were you wearing those rags then?"

The boy suddenly had a sheepish look on his face. "Not many people I've talked to liked the long version of my story, Mister Saitama hated it! I'll keep it short: I was kidnapped by some mole guys and kept underground for a coupla months."

Genos was shocked. "How could someone as strong as you be kidnapped?"

Holocho laughed, abashed and scratched the back of his head. "They… tricked me and made me eat some weird sleeping sweets, heh heh."

The cyborg considered the answer for a few moments. He suddenly remembered two important questions.

"What's your name and where is Saitama?"

"Oh, you've finally asked those questions! I'm Holocho, and Saitama's out grocery shopping." Holocho then laughed, "He was annoyed at me 'cus I ate so much of his food, but luckily there was a 50% discount at some store so he went there to buy some food."

Genos nodded slowly. Maybe the secret to their power was the amount of food they ate a day? He must look into this further.

Without warning, the cyborg sprang into a crouching position after jumping into the corridor of Saitama's small apartment.

"What are you-?" Holocho started.

"Object approaching at high speed. It's here!" Genos stated.

"Huh?"

Suddenly, the ceiling exploded into a rain of concrete and plaster. A strange green bug man appeared out of the dust, immediately springing into a fighting stance. It had a humanoid figure, but that's where the resemblance ended. The top of its head was a transparent glass dome showing its brain and two large pale curved teeth were positioned to the sides of its mouth. Sharp spikes decorated its back. What was the most eye catching, however, was the absence of hands, instead of hands, it had two, long, pointed dagger-like spikes. It was as if some mad scientist had mixed together a human and a praying mantis.

"Kyeeh kyekye kah! My name is… huh?" it started.

"Aww man, Mister Saitama's not gonna be happy about this!" Holocho cringed, looking at the gaping hole in the ceiling.

"How dare you look away! I am your worst enemy!" the monster shrieked.

"What, you? A bug? Don't make me laugh." Horocho scoffed, looking up and down at the monster's body.

"Hey-!"

"Bug slap!"

Holocho lazily slapped the green monster, sending it screaming and flying back through the hole it made in the ceiling and back down onto the street below. He then jumped after the bug monster.

Genos watched the two exit the apartment.

"There are two more outside, I suppose I'll deal with them," he thought. He ran and jumped out of the balcony, landing on the street, only to gasp in shock. The two other monsters were squashed under the first praying mantis monster and its head was crushed under Horocho's foot.

"Ugh! There's green stuff on my shoes!" he shouted, disgusted. He frantically tried to scrape the mantis monster's brain juice off his shoes.

"Oh… ok…" Genos said. He was unsure what to think.

Out of nowhere, a pair of claws erupted out of the ground and grabbed Holoco's feet pulling him into the ground until only his head was visible.

"Whoa!" Holocho yelled, in shock.

"Holocho!" Genos shouted, worried.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," the boy replied. His expression of shock quickly faded, morphing into one of happiness and pleasure. "It's nice and warm here. I like it underground."

"Elevated energy levels detected," a low, robotic voice said behind them. Genos's eyes widened and he whirled around to see a formidable figure with lightning sparking around it land heavily, kicking up clouds of dust. The dust cleared to reveal a large, shiny, dark grey metal-clad form. Its shoulders were clad with sharp conical spikes. A pair of cold blue eyes shone out from the darkness of the solid grey helmet.

"A cyborg!" Genos thought feverishly. "Could it be…?"

"You are not the target," the ape like figure rumbled, staring at Genos with a penetrating gaze.

Holocho forced his arms out of the hole and turned himself around, before promptly folding his arms back alongside his body and sinking back into the hole he was pulled into.

"Ooh! A big metal guy! He's like you but cooler!" he said enthusiastically to Genos.

Genos glanced back in confusion but whipped his head back around to face the enemy.

"You are in the way!" the metal clad opponent shouted. The cold blue eyes suddenly brightened in intensity as the beast leapt into the air cocking a fist. The dark grey figure slammed into ground, fist crashing towards Genos, but the young cyborg swiftly jumped over the blow. Using rockets in his feet, Genos span and kicked the monster on the helmet. He swiftly landed and charged at the monster, only to have a fist swung at him. Genos's eyes widened and he raised two hands to block the incoming blow, causing a shockwave. As the two struggled to push each other's fists aside, Genos calmly said:

"Now listen. I have a few questions for you."

Holocho had been watching the fight with great interest. He hoped Genos would win, of course, but that bigger robot dude was so cool!

The ground shuddered as a big creature walked up behind Holocho.

"Hah hah hah. It seems like you are in-" a deep voice started. But it seemed like the source of the voice stopped in shock as Holocho pulled himself out of the ground, turned around and dropped back down the hole.

"Oh! A lion man! Please, continue!" Holocho said eagerly.

The "lion man" continued staring at him in shock.

"I'm just staying here because it's comfortable."

After a brief moment of confusion, the ''ion man' roared: "Ground dragon! Your attack was useless!"

A large mole with wickedly sharp claws emerged from the ground.

"But I-" it started but was brutally interrupted by Holocho kicking its head off.

"I hate moles," he snarled.

The 'lion man' roared in shock and anger. "You killed Ground Dragon! I, Beast King, will make you pay for your insolence!" He lunged forward and pointed his razor-sharp claws at Holocho's eyes. "I will begin by gauging your eyes out!" His hand shot forward at the boy's eyes, but was casually batted away. Beast King's eyes widened, but he swiftly composed himself. He swung at Holocho again, putting more force behind it than his previous strike only for it to be dodged by a semi-bored Holocho.

Beast King's face morphed into one of anger. "Pay attention to me! I, Beast King am the House of Evolution's second best fighter!" He roared. "If you struggled against Mosquito Girl, you will have no chance against me!"

Holocho merely smirked at this comment. He moved into a fighting stance and beckoned with an unmistakable gesture with his hands. 'Come.'

Beast King roared with all his might and anger, trying to intimidate the much shorter boy before him.

This had no effect.

"Dude, stop. Your breath stinks," Holocho grimaced.

However, this only made Beast King roar louder.

"You will regret taking me so casually! You should be cowering before me, begging for mercy!"

With that explosive statement, Beast King roared, "Now behold the true power of the Beast King!" His claws twitched and grew into wickedly sharp daggers.

"Lion Slash!"

Beast King violently slashed, releasing a sharp shockwave which sliced the house behind Holocho into pieces, but the shockwave was dodged easily by Holocho. Beast King then slashed at Holocho again repeatedly, releasing a grunt of effort with each slice, but every slash was effortlessly dodged by Holocho.

Seeing that his hits were nowhere near landing on the small nimble form of Holocho, Beast King gave on his attack. He suddenly roared with exertion, causing him to grow in size. His muscles bulged with power as he prepared his best attack.

"Lion Slash: Meteor- "

"Wow, the pussy's so massive now!" Holocho goshed obliviously. Indeed, the size difference between Holocho and Beast King was now very large, but perhaps he had used the wrong choice of language and said so at the wrong time.

"GRAAAHHHH!" Beast King roared out of frustration. He couldn't bear this insolent child's snarky comments any more!

"DOUBLE POWER! LION SLASH: METEOR POWER SHOWER!" he screamed.

A flurry of blows rained down on Holocho. He was caught by surprise by the ferocity of Beast King's strikes, causing Holocho to need to concentrate slightly to dodge the hailstorm of blows.

"He seems really angry for some reason," Holocho mused as he was dodging Beast King's blows. "Is it because I called him massive? Is he sensitive about his size?"

Beast King was beginning to tire. His ultimate technique was not meant to be used with double power, but the boy had pushed him too far. But, to Beast King's great frustration, he had not been able to land a single hit!

Beast King's slashes slowed and eventually stopped altogether. Beast King then promptly collapsed, panting fast from his exertion. Holocho then walked to the side of the fallen king's body.

"Is it because I called you massive?" he asked.

Beast King let out a small whimper of frustration.

"Nevermind." Holocho said in a sing-song tone, and casually kicked off Beast King's head.

* * *

Genos stood, arm raised and ready to fire at his defeated foe embedded in the wall. Around him, evidently, a fierce battle had taken place. There were deep craters littered across the street. Trees had been burnt to ash by a fearsome flame.

"You are going to answer my question or you will be eliminated, your choice," Genos stated calmly.

"It is you who is going to be eliminated, you blithering fool." the gorilla said in a pseudo-robotic voice. "I am the third most powerful fighter in the House of Evolution. At your power level, you will never beat the Beast King, the second most powerful fighter, you will be destroyed."

Beast King's head rolled up to the gorilla's feet.

"He was easy to - wow, so you were a gorilla!" Horocho goshed. "So cool! It's a shame your voice doesn't sound as good without your helmet though."

"How- what- how did you remove his head like that?" Armoured Gorilla stammered, eyes wide open.

"I got a lot of practice fighting against some mole guys a few months ago," Horocho mentioned casually. "What happened to your voice though?"

Armoured Gorilla panicked. "Look, I'm sorry! I was just trying to sound cool! I'll tell you everything! Just please don't hurt me!"

Clearly this boy was some sort of psychopath!

* * *

A/N: This was fun to write. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did! Unfortunately, due to school restarting, chapters will come out less often. However this does mean that they will be longer. See you next time!

* * *

**K****otano-chan: I hate mosquitoes too. I am a night owl so we have a clash every night. (Not as much as Saitama to run out to the streets to kill them. Lol) But I remember one night when I stayed up and killed 36 mosquitoes by hand cause I was SO pissed off damnit!**

**Anyway this fanfiction is interesting. Keep going!**

Thank you for your kind words! I agree, mosquitoes are a real pain to deal with. In China, they constantly kept me up at night. I didn't nearly kill as many as you though!

I definitely will keep writing this fanfiction, thanks**! (Btw, idk why but your review isn't showing on the website. I still got it though!)**


	4. The Apex Creation

"Long ago, there existed a brilliant young scientist. Through the musings of his astonishing genius, he was able to make a number of significant contributions to human knowledge. Eventually, however, his accomplishments led him to be disillusioned with the world. Though he was constantly showered with praise for the intricacies and revolutionary creations of his mind, none of his ideas or theories-" Armoured Gorilla started.

"Oh hey Mister Saitama!" Holocho shouted, waving at the approaching form of Saitama.

Saitama was walking carefully toward the trio, ignoring the destruction around him in his usual nonchalant manner. In each of his hands, he carried several large bags of vegetables and meat, each bag filled almost to bursting point. He nodded at Holocho and turned to the other two with a confused expression, but before he could speak, an eager Genos said:

"Greetings, Saitama. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Genos, the cyborg, who fought the mosquitoes alongside you last week."

Saitama nodded. "I remember you, you were the one with one arm! You saved me by burning all those mosquitoes!"

Genos nodded, but before he could reply, Armoured Gorilla burst in impatiently:

"Hey, could you let me finish? I was in the middle of a story!"

Holocho shook his head rapidly. "Nah, it was too long. Mister Saitama here doesn't like stories over 20 words anyway."

"Oh! Uh… Fine. The short version is, boss guy is very interested in your bodies." Armoured Gorilla said, looking at Saitama and Holocho.

Saitama's face turned into a mix of seriousness and disgust. "Sorry, but I'm not interested in guys."

"No no no! What I meant was that boss guy (called Dr. Genus by the way) wants to study how you guys got so strong!" the gorilla said, wincing.

Saitama frowned. "That's weird."

"Saitama." Genos said confidently. "I recommend we eliminate his boss as soon as possible. If we don't, the attacks will only continue and get worse. I'm sure your disciple here will agree with me."

Holocho snorted. "I'm not his disciple."

Genos looked at Saitama in confusion.

Saitama shrugged. "He says he doesn't know how to get home and his parents won't worry about him, so I'm letting him tag around."

"Oh…" Genos said. He was certain that Holocho was Saitama's student, but evidently not. However, this does open up a few options…

"Let's go," Saitama said suddenly, walking away.

"Now?!" Genos asked, bewildered.

"I'll put away my shopping first. There's a sale on tomorrow," Saitama said as he walked away. "Can't miss it."

"But... " Genos said in shock.

Holocho giggled. "You said as soon as possible after all!"

Holocho and Genos jogged to catch up with Saitama.

Armoured Gorilla watched them leave with an anxious frown. "This doesn't sound good, better tell the doctor," he thought as the top of his head opened, revealing a small radar dish.

"Hey, you." he suddenly heard Genos say threateningly.

The gorilla shouted in shock, hurriedly closing his head up. "Yes?"

"I have one last question." Genos stated, arm raised at Armoured Gorilla and incineration cannon heated. "The House of Evolution's cyborg development. Did it begin over four years ago?"

Genos's glowing yellow eyes widened intimidatingly giving Armoured Gorilla an unnerving stare. "How many were created? Have any of them destroyed towns in the past?"

Armoured Gorilla hmmed in thought. "Yeah, I'm not really sure. But at the House of Evolution I'm the only combat cyborg."

Genos grunted, unsatisfied with his answer. As he caught up with Saitama and Holocho, Holocho asked, "What was that about? Murderous cyborgs?"

"I'll tell you later."

* * *

"Impossible!" Dr. Genus snarled in the dark laboratory. "Our elite force, formed for the destruction of these archaic humans, wiped out?!"

A large green display in front of him showed the statuses of each member of the 'messengers' sent to capture the duo. All but the gorilla were yellowed out.

A clone spoke from the side of the room. "According to Armoured Gorilla's report, the two responsible for doing so are on their way here now, as well as the man who killed Mosquito Girl with one hit."

Dr. Genus shuddered with fright, sweat forming on his face. "If they manage to make it to the lab, all of our research, everything we have been working on, could be destroyed."

"We're in serious trouble," another clone said.

Dr. Genus took in a shaky breath and clenched his fists. "We're forced to use our trump card."

All around him, clones inhaled in shock.

"Begin preparations for the release of Carnage Kabuto."

The clones burst into a terrified disbelieving shock.

"No way!"

"Not him!"

"No, that's crazy!"

Suddenly, piercing alarms blared through the laboratory. Dr. Genus ran to the command console.

"They've tripped the perimeter alarms!" the mad scientist shouted in alarm. "Set all traps in the upper floors! Only once they fail, release Carnage Kabuto!"

* * *

The trio stood touched down in front of the large laboratory.

"Happy now?" Saitama asked Holocho irritably.

Holocho sprouted a sheepish grin and scratched the back of his head. "Sorry! I just thought running through the forest was really boring!"

Saitama sighed, and gazed at the tower looming in front of them. "1... 2... 3... 4... 5… 6...looks like it's about eight storeys high-"

He was interrupted by Genos's incineration cannons charging. Electricity ran through his arms as Genos charged them up. He aggressively pushed his hands forward, releasing the pent-up energy forward at the tower. Flames roared out of his incineration cannons, racing towards the tower… having no effect. Instead of hitting the tower, Genos's flames hit the back of Holocho's hand as he flicked Genos's energy upwards and away from the tower. Genos's jaw dropped in shock as he stared at the slightly disgruntled boy in front of him.

Holocho pouted in response. "You were about to blow it up! I couldn't let you do that 'cus there could be cool secrets in there!"

Holocho span and ran towards the entrance of the lab. Genos stared at the boy's retreating form. "He blocked my incineration cannon… with a flick…"

"He's right, you know," Saitama said. "For all you know, you could have destroyed-"

He was interrupted by the sound of four Tesla coils, twenty bombs and several dozens of flying razor disks, their sole target being the small figure of Holocho. The traps had all been activated as soon as the boy opened the door. Once the smoke cleared, it revealed a soot-covered Holocho.

"That went well" stated Saitama sarcastically.

"Being blown up like this brings back bad memories." Holocho said with a quiet voice. "Genos. You were right. Destroy the building!"

Genos looked at Saitama, confused as to what was going on. Saitama understood why Holocho was feeling this way and nodded in confirmation. Genos, after a moment of hesitation, shrugged, and charged his incineration cannons. He then quickly fired. A large explosion rocked the forest, and when the smoke cleared, the massive lab was replaced by a wide, gaping hole.

Genos's eyes widened in panic. Holocho hadn't moved when he fired! However, his eyes widened further when Holocho tapped his shoulder.

"Silly robot, you thought I was caught up in your candle flame didn't you?" he snorted, shaking his head. He gently pushed Genos towards the freshly formed ruins. "Come on. There must be a secret basement somewhere."

The trio walked around the ruins of the laboratory, searching for any sign of an entrance to an underground lair.

"Found it." Saitama said while casually peeling back a bolted down steel hatch. The entrance revealed a long concrete stairway down, the bottom steps shrouded in darkness. "This is gonna be interesting."

A shrill scream of fear accompanied by a continuous stream of gunfire echoed faintly down the dark corridor

Holocho immediately bolted off towards the source of the screams, excitement evident on his childish face. "Finally! Action!"

"Hey!" Saitama yelled as his speeding form. He sighed in frustration. "That boy…" He gestured at Genos to follow. "Let's go."

Holocho raced down the hallway, closely followed by Genos and Saitama. In the distance, the corridor opened up to a large room. Holocho could hear the faint murmurs of a conversation.

"I'm the strongest fighter in the House of Evolutiooon!" A guttural voice drawled.

"You were imprisoned because you're mentally unstable. We couldn't control you." a voice replied grimly. "There was no choice in the-" the voice stopped suddenly. "I hear them! They're coming!" Just as he finished his sentence, Holocho skidded to a stop in the entrance of the room. He took in the surroundings with a small gasp. Streaks of blood decorated the dark grey floor of the room along with white shreds of cloth. Bits of shattered glass and plastic were strewn around the room along with black, silky hair. It was as if many identical people had been smeared against the floor by a powerful force. Holocho decided he didn't want to look at that. A man and a large, deformed monster stood in the centre of the room, both staring at the small boy. Saitama and Genos appeared at his sides.

"That's a strange looking beetle thing over there," Saitama remarked.

"That's them!" the man said, frantically pointing at Saitama and Holocho. "They're extremely powerful! I want you to capture them!"

"Shut up, fool," the beetle monster growled, backhanding the man into a wall.

The monster casually walked up to the trio with a leer on his face. "So… you two are strong, huh?"

Saitama and Holocho nodded slowly.

"That means I don't need you!" The monster exclaimed, brutally throwing his fist at Genos. Genos's eyes widened, caught unprepared and helpless at the monster's incredible speed, but they widened even further when Holocho appeared in front of him, effortlessly catching the monster's fist.

"No."

"This boy…" Genos thought in awe.

The large beetle monster chuckled. "Impressive! Not many can block me like that. That's why the doctor asked me to capture you lot. I'm the only one who can!"

Holocho smirked in response.

"My name is Carnage Kabuto by the way. There's a combat experimentation room that way." he said, pointing down the corridor. "How about we throwdown in there?"

They walked down the corridor into a giant white chamber. Massive polished white square tiles made up the whole room, giving it a pure, clinical look. The sheer size of the room made even Carnage Kabuto look like a mere ant.

"Pretty big huh?" Carnage Kabuto yelled, his voice echoing. "It's the largest room in the facility. This is where we fight to test our combat abilities. Which means there's plenty of room to kick your asses!"

His face morphed into a sadistic grin. "Well then. Let's start the killing."

Genos stepped forward. "Let me take this one." He saw this as a good opportunity to show off his power and skill and hopefully impress Saitama enough to let him become his disciple.

Ever since he witnessed Saitama's strength fighting Mosquito Girl, Genos desperately wanted to become his student. After watching the fierce battle between Mosquito Girl and Holocho, he knew that he needed more power to accomplish his goals. He had assumed that Saitama already had a disciple, Holocho, but when he found out he wasn't Saitama's disciple, he knew he had to take the chance to learn to study under the most powerful man he knew.

"Uhh… You sure you can take him?" Saitama asked with a worried look on his face. "You were almost turned into a bad piece of modern art back there."

"Yes, I can." Genos stated. He took in a deep breath, and before Saitama could reply, he launched himself at Carnage Kabuto with a murderous speed. He moved in an erratic zigzag, trying to confuse the enemy. As soon as he was near, he leapt up and punched the beetle monster in the face, but Carnage Kabuto was barely fazed. Seeing the little effect his blow had, he jumped back several metres away from Carnage Kabuto. Genos then boosted towards the monster, pummelling him multiple times in varying parts of his body with one hand and unleashed unrelenting, scorching crimson flames with another, but to no effect. Carnage Kabuto didn't even bother to block Genos's blows and the baking flames caused no reaction from the monster.

Genos flew back and landed a fair distance away from Carnage Kabuto, analysing the data gleaned from his brief exchange with the monster. His blows had made no visible effect on the monster's hard shell exoskeleton - his Machine Gun Blows technique would be useless against him. His flames from his incineration cannons did nothing apart from maybe tickle him despite the heat of the flames put out by them. He had to use a different strategy.

The young cyborg flew further away from the monster and landed in a crouch.

"Oh? Running away?" Carnage Kabuto taunted. "I wouldn't blame you - you're hopeless against me!"

Genos merely frowned in response. He charged up his incineration cannon in his left hand, making it glow and sparkle with flames and electricity. He also heated his rockets built in his feet. Suddenly, with a grunt of exertion, he launched himself at Carnage Kabuto with lightning speed. His velocity increased exponentially as he rocketed towards the cocky monster using his feet and his right hand to guide himself.

"You're trying something new? Go ahead! It's gonna be futile any-"

The monster's eyes widened in shock and pain as he looked down as Genos's fist embedded in his torso, cracking through his shell.

"Incinerate."

Pent up flames were suddenly released from Genos's hand, searing the inside of the monster and the surrounding with intense heat.

"You little…" Carnage Kabuto snarled in anger. With a guttural yell, he ripped Genos's arm out of his body and used it to slam Genos deep into the ground. With a brutal kick, he sent Genos tumbling away at high speed. Genos frantically righted himself just before he smashed into the wall. He assessed his situation.

Genos was in a bad state. His body was cracked in several places and his right arm was mangled beyond use. Luckily he couldn't feel pain or he would have fallen unconscious from the agony that a normal body would be experiencing right now.

"This is bad," he thought grimly. "I am completely outclassed in speed, strength and agility. My only advantage is his seemingly unstable mental state. I need to use that to my advantage."

He slowly stood up to see an enraged Carnage Kabuto barrelling towards him. The blonde cyborg frantically dove out of the way of the rampaging monster's path.

"I must not let him hit me! One hit and I'm out!"

Genos rocketed away, high up near the ceiling. With his remaining hand, he fired multiple quick bursts of flame at the monster. Despite the futility of his actions, it was his only way to attack the monster without being instantly destroyed.

"That just tickles!" Carnage Kabuto roared. "And I hate tickles!"

He leapt at Genos with murder in his eyes. Genos didn't even have time to think. In a flash, Carnage Kabuto's fist crashed into Genos, sending flying towards the ground at high speeds. The fallen cyborg crashed in an undignified heap several meters away from the spectating duo, letting out a painful grunt. He was too damaged to move.

"Genos!" Holocho shouted in alarm, running over to Genos, Saitama looking over with a semi bored but worried face. The boy crouched by Genos's shattered body. "Gees, you've been turned into modern art!"

Genos let out a puff of smoke from his mouth.

Holocho stood up and glared at the leering Carnage Kabuto.

"I suppose you're next?"

* * *

A/N: Genos has been easily destroyed by Carnage Kabuto. (I mean, what did you expect?) Next chapter, we'll see how Holocho handles the beetle monster. Will Saitama even need to step in?

This was my first fight scene I've written with Genos. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Feedback on it would be greatly appreciated!


	5. Enraged Beyond Limits

Holocho stood, unintimidated by the leering giant before him. At his feet, Genos lay in a crumpled heap, broken and defeated.

"Little boy," Carnage Kabuto said patronisingly. "Do you really think you stand a chance at defeating me? I am taller than you, bigger than you, stronger than you, you have no chance of even touching me!"

Holocho snorted. "You underestimate my power."

Carnage Kabuto gave a great belly laugh, scorning Holocho's confident statement. "You are like an ant to me! I could squash you with a single stomp."

He emphasized his statement with a heavy stomp, smashing his foot into the ground.

"But if you really wanna try take me on, I'll give you one free shot."

The monster moved into an open stance, arms wide apart.

"Come!"

With a slight smile, Holocho leaned forward, and faster than Carnage Kabuto could blink, a fist-sized hole appeared on his torso's exoskeleton. The monster's face morphed into an expression of confusion and pain. "When- How did you do that?!" He asked incredulously.

"That was just a tap," taunted Holocho. "And I thought you were tough!"

"I was just caught unprepared-" growled Carnage Kabuto.

"You were going on about how you were the best fighter in the House of Evolution, but you get a hole poked in you by a single tap!"

Carnage Kabuto narrowed his eyes in anger. "Boy, watch your-"

"I wouldn't even call it a tap, I barely even touched you! What you really are is a hyped-up mutated beetle-"

"Shut your mouth or I'll-!" Carnage Kabuto growled. His whole body was trembling with anger.

"You'll what? Crush me? You don't even have the power to scratch me!"

"ENOUGH! You think you're so good," the monster growled between heavy pants. His face was distorted into a mask of pure rage. "Then wait until you see my CARNAGE FORM!"

From the side, Saitama snorted. "He's sassy."

"Stop! Don't do it!"

By the entrance, Dr. Genus looked on with a horrified stare. "You'll go on another rampage!"

His words had no effect on the raging monster.

Gritting his teeth, Carnage Kabuto said, "You landed one clean hit on me."

His forearms doubled in size.

"Woah, you got a transformation!" Holocho said, getting excited.

"I would have fought you normally," the monster growled, ignoring the boy.

His muscles bulged and his armour turned into a purple colour, highlighted by light green skin underneath. His horn lengthened and sharpened into a long, deadly spear point.

"But since you pissed me off,"

Sirens began wailing. Bright red lights started flashing in the chamber, throwing the room into a red hue. The only entrance was closed off by a set of thick, layered sliding doors, shutting the occupants of the room inside. Carnage Kabuto's body swelled in size, becoming double his previous height.

"I'm gonna crush you!" Carnage Kabuto yelled, slamming his foot into the ground, crushing the floor underneath.

"CARNAGE MODE!"

The tiles turned into an ominous black colour framed with red outlines.

Carnage Kabuto's glowing red eyes turned to face Holocho. His scimitar-like teeth grinned as he opened his mouth to talk.

"When I get like this I lose control for a whole week and my lust for death cannot be quelled!"

Holocho's face grew serious as he understood the consequences of Carnage Kabuto's form.

"After I kill you, I'll head into town and go on a killing rampage until next Saturday!"

At the side, Saitama's face grew into one of confusion and concern.

"A week… Next Saturday…?" he quietly asked himself. "Does that mean…?"

"If you are indeed a strong hero, then try and stop me!" Carnage Kabuto yelled.

With a throat-wrenching roar, the lab-made mutant uppercut Holocho with enough force to level a tower block, making Holocho fly backwards towards a wall. As Holocho flew backwards, he thought, "I may have underestimated him a bit."

Holocho re-orientated himself in the air, so when he reached the wall, he landed in a crouch. He sprang down towards where he was launched from, sending himself flying at the rapidly approaching form of Carnage Kabuto. The monster unleashed another ground-shattering punch, but instead of being blown away, Holocho grabbed the fist and used it to pull himself towards the monster's torso, delivering a swift but powerful jab into Carnage Kabuto's abdomen. Carnage Kabuto was sent flying down the way he came, crashing into the ground, throwing up a spray of rubble from the destroyed floor. His armour had a large hole in it, but he ignored it. He was too enraged.

Using the brief moment of Carnage Kabuto's incapacitation, Holocho jumped towards the mutant, uppercutting his jaw just as he rose from the crater. His punch made a trail of sickly green blood fly out of the monster's mouth as he flew upwards towards the ceiling. As soon as the Carnage Kabuto crashed into the ceiling, Holocho was already there, launching himself from a nearby wall at stupefying speeds towards the beast. His fist, augmented by his speed, plowed into Carnage Kabuto's chest, producing an audible crack as it sent the monster flying into the wall at the other side of the chamber. Carnage Kabuto bounced off the wall onto the floor where he lay writhing in agony for a brief moment before jumping onto his feet. His shell was now cracked in multiple places, but he didn't let that deter him. He sprinted towards the boy, unleashing a powerful punch, only for it to be blocked by a cross-guard. However, the force behind the punch led to the boy being propelled into a nearby wall at high speeds. Carnage Kabuto followed up with a savage roundhouse kick, it was hastily blocked by Holocho, but it sent the boy flying diagonally upwards. As soon as Holocho impacted the wall, Carnage Kabuto's fist came flying towards the boy's face.

Unfortunately for the monster, Holocho used the incoming fist to push himself above it, propelling him towards the ceiling. He then quickly orientated himself before launching himself at the shocked monster, striking a vicious blow on his forehead as he looked up. The punch sent Carnage Kabuto streaking into the ground, gouging out a deep crater. Carnage Kabuto lay there, writhing in agony, but he was given no respite. Holocho brutally grabbed his face and threw the monster into the wall so hard that Carnage Kabuto stayed imprinted onto the wall.

Holocho landed near the downed beast with a disappointed look on his face. "Is that it? All you've done so far is be a ping pong ball!"

His cocky statement provoked a snarl of anger. Carnage Kabuto sprang out of the wall onto the ground with expression of pure rage on his face. "Shut up! I've only been at 50% power so far!"

"Is that so?" Holocho replied with an expression of curiosity and interest. "I've only been at 1% myself!"

Carnage Kabuto's turned into one of shock then quickly into scorn. "You're bluffing! You're scared, aren't you?"

"No, I-"

"Then allow me to introduce you to my Ascended Carnage Mode Form!" the monster roared, spittle flying out his mouth. He began screaming, muscles bulging outwards. "This will increase my power by 300%!"

"Oh! Another transformation!" Holocho shouted eagerly. "That's so cool!"

In the sidelines, Genos had managed to prop himself up against the wall despite his damaged body. "Are they for real?" he thought in bewilderment as he watched Carnage Kabuto roar in exertion with muscles doubling in size and Holocho standing to the side, arms crossed, cocky expression in his face. "Is he just going to let him transform? To test his power?"

"Kill him!" the cyborg yelled over the racket Carnage Kabuto was producing. "What are you waiting for?!"

Holocho merely grinned even more.

"There's no use," Genos muttered, giving up.

The monster grew in size, towering over the preteen even more. His already bulging muscles had doubled in size along with his horn. His armour plating had turned into a slightly lighter hue of blue accompanied by light green skin underneath. He stepped towards the small boy, feet creating craters in the floor with each step.

He laughed, a deep, grating sound. "I can smell your fear now, boy! You're trembling in your shoes! You know how outmatched you are now, you should have finished me off while I was transforming!"

"Exactly!" Genos thought. He looked over to see Saitama's reaction, but instead saw him with a distraught and horrified look on his face. "Huh?"

"Saturday… Next week… Sale... " raced through the bald hero's mind as he struggled to comprehend the implications of the monster's words.

Meanwhile, Holocho was being blitzed by a flurry of blows with Dr. Genus looking on in wonder and fear at his creation's new form.

"Did he achieve that transformation out of pure anger?" He thought feverishly. "Sometimes my genius… scares me."

Holocho was dodging each blow, but he understood that if he was hit by one, he would be the ping pong ball instead. He saw a small opening in the monster's furious attack and made full use of it. He struck a devastating blow in Carnage Kabuto's gut, causing him to involuntarily spit out light green blood. Holocho followed up with a series of kicks and punches, each one striking in the same place - the monster's gut. He finished off his combo by leaping up and hitting with a lightning-quick roundhouse kick to Carnage Kabuto's face. The mutant was sent stumbling, agonised expression on his face.

"Man, you're making me use a bit more power! About… 4%!"

"SHUT UP!" the monster screamed, spitting large amounts of blood out his mouth. "If you're so strong, why are you dodging?!"

Carnage Kabuto unleashed another furious blitz of punches, all with the potential to level several buildings.

"Because," Holocho said between dodges, "Just because I'm strong, doesn't mean that physics doesn't apply to me,"

"I! KNOW!" Carnage Kabuto roared in frustration.

"Then why-?"

Carnage Kabuto whipped a punishingly fast uppercut at Holocho, taking advantage of Holocho's brief moment of confusion. He sent Holocho flying towards the ceiling, ricocheting off it into the ground, where he noticed back into the ceiling.

"That was an experience," said a rather stunned Holocho after landing in a heap on the floor. However he was given no chance to rest as he narrowly rolled out the way of Carnage Kabuto's giant foot, stomping the ground where he just was. His face grew slightly more serious as he concentrated on the threat in front of him. He leapt to the side, dodging the monster's furious side kick. Holocho watched in interest as a massive shock wave was formed by the force of the monster's kick.

"So… If I punch hard enough, I can make a shock wave that hits the enemy even if I don't hit them!"

Carnage Kabuto's fist approached Holocho several times the speed of sound, but was effortlessly dodged by a nimble Holocho. However, another large shock wave formed from the power of the punch, shattering the tiles behind it. Holocho wanted to try this for himself. He ducked underneath the monster's next punch and quickly jabbed the air in front of Carnage Kabuto's thigh, causing a shockwave to impact the thigh, resulting in a sharp snapping sound. The front of the monster's thigh was blown apart.

Carnage Kabuto roared in shock and agony. "You didn't even hit me! What the hell was that?!"

Holocho stopped and considered. "I'm going to name that move... A wave punch!"

The mutant snarled angrily. "Wave punch or not, I'm gonna kill you!"

He leapt at Holocho and wildly swung at him. Holocho dodged backwards and punched the air. A sharp crack rang out, the resulting shockwave blowing away parts of the monster's already heavily damaged armour, revealing the light green skin underneath. The enraged monster leapt and swung at Holocho again, but instead of facing his opponent, Holocho jumped a large distance away before turning to face Carnage Kabuto.

"Let's see how far away I can do this..." He said, punching the air repeatedly. Several large shockwaves of air flew at the approaching Carnage Kabuto, each blow tearing off armour and flesh. By the time he reached the boy, he was in abysmal condition. He was only standing through pure rage and willpower.

"You... You've done it now, boy." He growled, towering in front of the unimpressed Holocho. "I'm going to mutilate you so bad, even dogs will find you revolting!"

"Hah, you've gotta try better than-"

"NOOOO!" a piercing scream cried, drawing the perplexed and irritated attention of everyone in the room. Saitama collapsed to his knees.

"TODAY IS BARGAIN DAY AT THE SUPERMARKET!" Saitama cried, distraught. Angry tears were forming on his face.

"What is this guy on?" Dr. Genus thought incredulously. He was suddenly hit by a scrunched-up ball of paper. Genos, being the one who threw it, shouted, "There's a massive sale on today! Saitama cannot afford to miss it!"

Dr. Genus unfolded the paper to reveal a flyer advertising a 'one time sale with everything up to 90% off'.

"Ah…"

"I SCREWED-"

"Oi!" Carnage Kabuto shouted angrily as he landed in front of Saitama. "We're having a fight here-"

"Saitama! The store closes at ten pm and it's only about six right now, if we hurry, we could make it!" Genos broke in from the side. "Although… someone needs to carry me…"

"Let's go!" Saitama shouted, running towards the wall.

"NO!" Carnage Kabuto roared, jumping in front of Saitama. "I'm gonna-"

He was effortlessly punched away with extreme force. His body turned into fine green mush as it blew a hole through the thick wall of the lab.

"Ah…" Holocho said in mild shock, running after Saitama, not before slinging the damaged body of Genos over his shoulder.

"Hey! Be careful…" Genos said as they ran into the distance.

"Wait, Saitama, didn't you go shopping already?" a young voice asked.

"That was another store!"

Dr. Genus watched them leave with a stupefied expression on his face.

"If mere humans could get so powerful… what use is my research? Have I been pursuing the wrong path the whole time?"

He sighed resignedly.

"I think I'm finished… dabbling in evolution."

* * *

A/N: And that's a wrap! I hope you guys liked that long fight scene, it was quite fun to write. What's gonna happen next? Is Genos finally going to become Saitama's disciple? Is Saitama going to make that crucial sale? Find out, next time in Dragon- sorry. DBZ references galore!

* * *

Reviews

**rmarcano321**

Firstly, thank you for your reviews!

Mosquitoes indeed do… suck

Yeah, he did come from a weird place after all so that merits a weird name IMO

I agree.

Saitama does indeed make everything funny, he's so well written in the actual thing!


	6. Unappreciated Hero

Saitama was fast asleep, snoring away. His hand twitched slightly, as if reacting to something in his dream. Suddenly, he sat up.

"Don't come asking to play rock, paper, scissors with a booger on your finger!" he screamed, face wide in shock and disgust. He then realised where he was, looking around. "A dream?"

Holocho, sitting nearby, howled with laughter. "So THAT's what disgusts you, huh?" His face grew serious as he gestured at the TV in front. "There's a terrorist attack going on. The Paradisers are acting up."

Saitama casually glanced at the news programme. "Meh, nothing to worry about. The police will deal with them, easy."

Holocho shrugged. He knew when Saitama didn't care about something, the issue would be far below what was considered dangerous.

As Saitama was brushing his teeth, the news report ran on. "... Like Hammerhead, the group is made up of unemployed young men with no motivation to work."

"See? Nothing to-" he started thinking.

"Also, the group members have shaven heads, making them look quite intimidating."

Saitama's face grew deadly serious as he spat out the toothpaste, focusing on the TV screen.

"If you come across any shaved-head men on the street, it is advised to get as far away from as possible."

"What?" Saitama said in shock softly. Beads of sweat formed all over his face.

"But- that means- they stole my look!" He yelled, aghast.

"Calm down, Saitama-" Holocho attempted but he stopped in shock watching Saitama zipping across the room to pull on his hero suit.

"If they keep acting up, I'll be treated as a villain despite my years of being a hero!" Saitama shouted urgently. "We need to stop them!"

The pair rushed down into the streets of City Z.

* * *

"Where did it say they were going again?" Saitama asked the boy clad in a yellow T-Shirt and red shorts impatiently.

"I think they said they were going to destroy some rich guy's tower," Holocho responded, thinking hard. His face lightened. " Zeniru's tower!"

Saitama's face turned into determination but then to one of confusion. "Where's that?"

Holocho scoffed in disbelief. "You seriously don't know where it is?"

Saitama looked at him blankly.

"It's the golden poop tower!" Holocho exclaimed.

Saitama continued looking at him blankly.

"Whatever. Just follow me!"

The pair races through the city, passing dirty streets and eventually arriving in the central area of City Z.

"Someone help! A Paradiser's chasing a boy!"

Holocho skidded to a stop and gawked at the source of the sound, an anxious young man. "What are you talking about?"

The man cried out in alarm. "Why'd you stop? The terrorist's gonna catch you!"

Saitama jogged up to them, but before he could speak the man yelled out in terror, pointing at the Caped Baldy.

"A terrorist!"

Saitama instantly had an outraged expression on his face. "I'm not!" He shouted defensively.

However, his words had no effect, the man kept on screaming, inciting panic in the onlookers nearby. Saitama's outraged expression turned suddenly into interest as he heard a rock crash into the giant golden turd behind him.

"They're in the forest!" Holocho shouted, breaking into a run, quickly followed by flustered Saitama.

"Wait up!"

* * *

A young man made of metal was laying on a table, surrounded by wires and mechanical arms.

"As with the mosquito monster, I once again underestimated my opponent's power. Kabuto was simply too strong." Genos said grimly. "If they weren't there, I would have certainly been destroyed."

"I see." a nasal voice replied from the side. An elderly, white-coated man was working on a console near the prone cyborg. "Well I'm glad you're okay-"

"Doctor…" Genos broke in, causing the man to look over at Genos. "Mister Saitama and Holocho saved my life. Perhaps even twice considering how strong the mosquito monster became after her transformation. You, Doctor Kuseno, restored my life to me. Later this life was saved by the eccentric duo."

"Yes, I get the picture, Genos. What you're trying to tell me is how amazing they are, right?"

"Yes." responded Genos. "Holocho's power and speed are unbelievable, but Saitama… he destroyed both incredibly strong monsters in a single blow."

"Genos, they're not ready just yet, but I am developing a new series of augmentations. When I replace your existing parts with these new ones, you may be able to surpass Holocho, potentially even Saitama."

Genos gasped in shock, looking up from the operating table.

"I imagine they must possess an enormous amount of strength for you to go on about them so."

Genos returned his head to its original position. "Yes."

* * *

The duo walked slowly in the dense overshadowing woods, casting around for any sign of the Paradisers.

"Saitama," Holocho said.

"Huh?" the baldy responded, still looking around for the terrorists.

"You say you've been doing this hero stuff for… about three years?"

"Yeah, so what?"

"Why is then that no-one recognised you back then?"

Saitama turned and sighed. "I don't know. I've defeated plenty of monsters in those three years, but no-one's actually recognised my efforts."

Holocho thought about this for a moment, but his train of thought was derailed by a series of thumps that steadily grew louder behind them. He turned and saw the approaching Paradiser.

"There's your guy," he remarked.

The Paradiser stopped in front of the duo and glared at them. He was dressed in a towering smooth black suit of armour that bulged outwards at the joints. Red fire artwork decorated the waist and along the thighs of the armour. The head was unprotected, revealing a sharp, angular shaved face. "What's your deal?" he said, staring down at the pair. "Come to join the Paradisers? Boys aren't allowed."

"No, no, I'm just a guy who's a hero for fun," Saitama responded.

"And I'm just tagging along," Holocho chipped in from the side.

"For personal reasons, I'm here to smash your head in." Saitama said calmly, getting a snort from the terrorist in scorn. "So, where are your followers?" asked Saitama, leaning to one side to see behind the tall Paradiser.

"Then… DIE!" the terrorist shouted, suddenly punching Saitama with a giant metal fist. His punch threw up large clouds of dust, the force behind the blow causing strong gusts of wind which uprooted many trees in the vicinity.

"I better get out of here quick." he muttered, noting the clear sky above. However, as soon as the dust cleared, a slightly disappointed Saitama stood, unfazed. Holocho was standing to his side, seemingly irritated.

"Huh?" he thought, confused. "I thought I punched him." A drop of sweat rolled down his face.

"What a letdown," Saitama said. "I was all excited about these new battle suits. But the design is lame, and all they do is give you superhuman strength.

"Yeah, we've seen better. These make you look like a buff snowman," Holocho added.

The Paradiser snarled in anger. "You have no idea how hard it was to get these battlesuits! How could you know their value?" He raised his hands above his head and brought them down to his sides. He bent down into a low stance with his arms raised to chest height. The flames decorating his armour flickered then glowed brightly. Large blood vessels bulged in his head as he shouted, "I've been looking for someone to test the full power of the suit on!"

The smooth black metal of the suit bulged outwards even more, turning into muscle-like shapes as the man screamed louder and louder. He raised his arms above his head, clenching his fists. The flames glowed even more brightly, turning into a piercingly bright light that emanated red sparks of electricity. The screaming stopped for a brief moment as he gathered his breath.

"Spin attack!" he yelled, rotating his arms frantically, stirring up loud clouds of dust.

Saitama's face turned into one of shock. "I used to use that move all the time when I was a kid…" he thought, recollecting images of his younger self awkwardly spinning his hands around like the terrorist in front of him. Two gloved hands shot out, catching the towering man's hands mid-spin.

"Huh?" he gasped weakly. "No way…"

"Hammerhead, huh? He's a lot like me." Saitama thought, his face a mask of pity and knowing.

"What the hell are you?" Hammerhead shouted, tearing his arms free from Saitama's gloved grasp. He yelled suddenly in shock as Saitama elbowed his gut. His armour shattered into a million pieces as if it were made of glass, leaving an extremely surprised and naked Hammerhead standing with his mouth open, whimpering in fright.

"W-wait! I just wanted to get out of working…" he said with a large, sheepish grin on his face. His hands were raised in front of him in a placating gesture.

"Don't be bad anymore, okay?" Saitama said sternly.

"Huh? So you're not gonna kill me?"

"Get outta here."

"Okay!" the naked man said, running away, screaming.

"Well, that happened" Holocho said, watching the man run away.

"Let's go." Saitama turned and started walking away. Holocho quickly followed.

"Where did Hammerhead go?" a soft voice asked from behind the pair.

Holocho span around to see a young, skinny man standing behind them. He was clad in a black skin suit, silver metal plates attached to the upper body. He wore a long purple scarf, its ends trailing in the wind.

"There's no one else but you." he said, giving the pair an intense stare from his sharp eyes.

"Why have you got purple stuff under your eyes?" Holocho asked.

"Wha- Huh?" the ninja said, jerking his head to look at Holocho.

"Does it make you go faster?" Holocho pushed.

"Child, I've got nothing against you, run away before you get caught in the crossfire." the ninja said, regaining his composure.

Holocho thought for a moment. "Ah! You think Saitama's a Paradiser!"

"Yes, now go run away-"

"He's not! Look at him! Yellow clothes, cape…"

The ninja was obviously unconvinced. "Get out of the way."

"No."

Suddenly, a sharp metal object came flying at Holocho, who caught it without hesitation.

"Kunai?" Holocho muttered. He looked up to see a long, silver katana thrust at his eye. He casually caught that with his other hand.

The ninja gasped in shock, frozen in his position.

"You're aggressive…" Holocho commented. His hand clamped down, shattering the sword.

"Why are you defending him? He's clearly a Paradiser." the ninja said, stepping back, shattered sword in hand.

"Come on!" Saitama shouted in frustration. "Look at me!"

"I don't need to." the ninja replied. "With that bald head of yours, there's no denying it."

"No. Look, it's me!" Saitama said, visibly more frustrated. "You know, the guy who's a hero for fun-"

"Never heard of you." the mysterious man interrupted.

"Oh… I see…" Saitama said weakly, looking down.

"Anyway. That's not the problem" the ninja said. He glared at Holocho. "You read my attacks. Twice. That's the real problem. Born in a ninja village, I've been perfecting my techniques since childhood. Yet you saw right through them-"

"We get it, we get it!" Holocho said impatiently. "You just want to protect your ego!"

"Bastard!" the ninja shouted in fury. He leaped up into the air. Landing on a tree, he bounced rapidly from tree to ground to tree, speeding up exponentially. "What do you think of this speed that beats sound? Of these shockwaves? Can you even see me?"

Holocho smirked. "Speaking of shockwaves…" He drew back his fist, aiming it at the speeding ninja. Seeing a brief window of opportunity, his shot his fist out, punching the air with a deafening clap. A thin, lightning fast shockwave sped out towards the ninja, hitting him square on. "Wave punch!"

The ninja jumped onto the ground, gasping in pain. His eyes widened, tears of pain threatening to emerge. He then quickly stood up, seemingly collecting himself.

"I've worked every job from assassin to bodyguard. No ninja is more deadly. I am Speed-o'-Sound Sonic! But I am putting all that on hold. Now that I've found such a formidable foe, I will not rest until I've beaten you."

Saitama and Holocho looked on with sceptical and concerned expressions respectively.

"Boy! What is your name?" Sonic asked.

"Holocho..."

"Holocho! Next time we meet will be your demise!" the ninja yelled, knees together and legs shaking. He was barely keeping it together.

"Okay." Holocho responded.

"I, Speed-o'-Sound Sonic, the ultimate ninja, will bring you down without fail!" he shouted, voice going hoarse from pain. With that, he quickly fled, disappearing from sight.

"Why was he like that?" Holocho wondered.

"Oh… I see. I think I may have hit his… you know."

* * *

A/N: Poor Sonic. His children... Holocho is still figuring out how to control his wave punches after all!

* * *

rmarcano321: Potentially. He was pretty stunned by the 'archaic humans', but not as much as in canon...


	7. Record-breakers

Saitama sat cross-legged in front of the low table, troubled expression on his face.

"Genos. Please leave." Saitama said, looking down at the table. "I have a deeply troubling problem I need to think over."

Genos was sitting opposite Saitama, he had just arrived with the intention of asking to be Saitama's disciple. However, that would have to wait until later. His eyes widened as he heard Saitama's grim words. "What is the problem you are facing? Forgive my nosiness. Perhaps I could help solve this problem."

Holocho, sitting on the revolving chair, sighed. "No one knows who he is, he was confused for a terrorist on the street!"

Genos's face frowned in thought. "Why not?" he asked. "Perhaps you haven't defeated enough monsters for the public to notice?"

"Genos, I've been killing monsters for three years. Three. Years. Yet no one knows my name. Despite the numerous monsters and organisations I have brought down, no one even recognised me on the street!" Saitama's voice raised in intensity, showing his frustration and anger. "They even mistook me for a terrorist! Me! In my trademark superhero outfit! I might as well be another random baldy for all they know! I'm tired of it! Why doesn't anyone even recognise me? It's as if my three years of being a hero has amounted to nothing according to them!"

Genos took this in with a frown of consideration. Holocho's seemingly perpetual cheery mood seemed to be dampened by Saitama's woes.

Genos's face lightened as he thought of a solution. "Are you part of the Hero Association?"

Saitama's face was blank. "Hero Association?"

Holocho swivelled around to face the computer. "The Hero Association," he said as he searched it up on the desktop, with Genos and Saitama standing either side of him, "is a bunch of heroes who have been organised and fight monsters officially," paraphrasing. "How to join… aha! A test, if you get above the cut-off level, you get to be a hero! And it's tomorrow!"

Holocho swivelled around to face the pair. "If you're an official hero, people will recognise you!"

"Let's join." Saitama said without hesitation. Holocho rubbed his hands together in glee. "We get paid for it as well!"

"One last thing," Genos said as they stood up. "Saitama. Can I be your disciple?"

"Huh?" Saitama said.

"I am seeking vengeance for the deaths of my family by the hand of a crazed cyborg. The only way I can do so is by becoming strong. Like you. Please teach me your ways!" Genos pleaded.

Saitama mulled over Genos's words before deciding on an answer. "Sure," he said, shrugging.

"Really?" Genos said, slightly disbelieving. Was it actually this easy?

"It will be nice to have a deadly housekeeping cyborg after all." Saitama said to Genos's surprise. "After all, the door to door salesmen will be really scared of you. You don't seem to know how to smile!"

"R-right. Thank you master!" Genos stammered.

"Hmm. I think I'm getting kinder and kinder. Must be the effect of the kid," Saitama thought as he nodded absent-mindedly at Genos's thanks.

"Awesome!" Holocho cheered. "I won't need to do all the chores anymore!"

Saitama laughed. "Sure."

* * *

The odd trio stood outside the massive formidable arena, bright sunlight from the clear blue sky shining down on them. A constant stream of people of various sizes were entering the arena, some big and burly, others not so much. It also appeared that a number of people were also wearing their costumes, judging by the flamboyant colours some were sporting.

"That's a lot of people," commented Holocho as they walked towards the towering arena. "Must be a lot of waiting to do."

Saitama sighed in frustration. Waiting was one of his least favourite things, it was up there among mosquitoes. Genos had no response.

"Hey Genos, do you ever get bored of waiting?" Holocho asked.

"No." the cyborg answered curtly.

"Is it because you have games built in you?" Holocho asked, straight faced.

Genos shot him an incredulous look.

"What? You're a cyborg, so you probably have screens inside your head only you can see, you use those to play games!" Holocho said eagerly.

Genos sighed.

"Well, do you?"

Genos reluctantly confirmed Holocho's question. "Yes. I do have a few games installed."

"Woah! That's so cool!" Holocho gushed. "What games do you have?"

"Let me check. I have installed: Fort-" Genos started, but before he could answer, he was interrupted by an organiser.

"Please store your clothes in the lockers provided (apart from your undergarments of course) and line up for the first fitness test!" the man shouted.

"I wonder what Genos was gonna say," Holocho thought as he went to his locker. "Hopefully not FortKnight. Anything but FortKnight."

As soon as they stored their clothes away and lined up, the invigilator announced, "Jump from side to side for 30 seconds."

Holocho grinned at Saitama, who stood nearby. "Bet I can do more than you."

Saitama looked back at Holocho, smiling slightly. "Try your best."

"Begin!"

Saitama and Holocho instantly blurred from side to side, jumping faster than anyone could see. Gale-force winds were being given off by the pair as they jumped faster and faster. The test regulators looked on in open-mouthed shock, unable to comprehend their tremendous speeds.

"Stop!"

The pair stopped moving within a fraction of a second, leaving them standing rock-still, much to the relief of those who were being blown away by the winds they produced.

After a short while, the invigilators announced the number of jumps performed from behind a computer. "...Genos: 342. Holocho: 472957?! Saitama: 573920?!"

Holocho winced. "A bit less than you," he said, looking at a smirking Saitama. "Next time!"

"Next, a 1500m race! Achieve the lowest time possible!"

The potential heroes lined up at the start of the 1500m race.

"Run three laps of the circuit." The invigilator announced. "On your marks… Go!"

Saitama shot off like a cannonball, closely followed by Holocho. In under a second, they had completed a lap. The next two came with even faster speeds, astounding the other seemingly sluggish runners. Holocho leaped through the white finish tape, Saitama following by a hair's breadth, stunning the invigilators. Holocho shouted triumphantly, causing Saitama to huff in irritation. "I underestimated you." He stated. "Also, you jumped at the end! That wasn't fair!"

"Ha, they didn't say you couldn't jump!" Holocho shot back. "I won that fair and square!"

Looking back at the shrugging invigilators who overheard their conversation, Saitama's face turned serious. "Next time."

They made their way over to the weight lifting area.

"Lift as much weight as possible," the invigilator announced. "Work you way up to your maximum amount you can steadily hold."

The trio immediately started piling on weights on the sides of their barbells.

"You might want to start less…" the invigilator started, but the trio each managed to lift the maximum available weight with one hand, the invigilator trailed off into open-mouthed shock. "Never mind…"

"Holocho and Saitama: maximum weight!"

The potential heroes moved to the squat jump area. "Jump as high as you can with one jump!" The invigilator said enthusiastically. By now, people had noticed the amazing powers of the Holocho, Saitama and Genos and we're gathering around to see them perform their last fitness test. "Go!"

Genos jumped up, burying his head in the ceiling. Saitama and Holocho jumped up, penetrating the ceiling up to their waists. Holocho turned his head to look at Saitama. "Looks like it's a draw!" he said, stuck in the ceiling.

Saitama shrugged. "Sure. If this ceiling wasn't in place I would have won though."

Holocho laughed in response. "Sure, whatever you want to think!"

* * *

Genos sat in a large, grey windowed room, facing three interviewers behind a large oak desk with many sheets of paper scattered across.

"Just one final question, Genos." he said, sunlight reflected on his glasses. He took out a tablet and showed the screen to Genos. The House of Evolution's headquarters were shown on the screen, intact. "Does this building look familiar to you?" he asked. "We've been secretly investigating a group of troublemakers that call themselves the 'House of Evolution. Just when we identified its centre of operations, we found the building had been mysteriously destroyed."

"And with overwhelmingly intense firepower," a dark haired, bearded man on the right added.

"Are you… responsible for this?" the brown haired man asked Genos, giving him an intense stare.

"I am," Genos said nonchalantly. "Why?"

The interviewers gasped. The man on the left, a more elderly man, stamped on Genos's profile.

"Certified S class."

"I would like to mention something." Genos said, raising the attention of the interviewers.

"Go ahead," the man in the middle answered.

"My first attempt to destroy the building was actually thwarted." Genos stated. The interviewers inhaled in shock. "A boy called Holocho deflected my initial blast with a single flick."

"Seriously?"

"Yes. He was tested here today as well." Genos replied.

"Let me see… ah! Holocho! He's a… C class? Are you sure it was him?" the interviewer asked. But before Genos could reply, the interviewer said, "Ah, I see. He achieved perfect on the fitness test but abysmal in the written test."

"There was another one who came with us to destroy the House of Evolution. Saitama." Genos added. "Apparently they were interested in his resilient body."

"Hold on, there's much more to this than it seems." the interviewer cut in. "Start from the beginning, please."

Genos took the next hour to describe their trip to the House of Evolution in excruciating detail, the interviewers hanging on to every word.

"You may go now, Genos. Thank you for your time." the interviewer said.

As soon as Genos left the room, the man on the right asked, "Are you sure he is telling the truth? That mere C classes could take down a whole organisation?"

The man on the left said, "Well, they did break every record in the fitness test."

"Also Genos could have been downplaying his role against Kabuto, he did do a lot of damage with his penetrating incineration cannon attack."

The three interviewers thought silently about the information for a few minutes.

"I say we put them in high A class-"

"No. Their written tests show their limited mental capacity."

"How about mid B class then?"

"But then their fitness test results far outclass other B classes."

"Fine. High B class. They're overwhelmingly strong, but not too smart."

"Agreed. If they are actually S class material, they will naturally rise to the top."

"We will have to keep a close eye on them."

* * *

Genos walked up to Saitama and Holocho. The pair had been waiting for a fair time by the lockers as a result of Genos's interview.

"Oi! Where were you?!" Holocho shouted, annoyed. "We've been waiting for ages! Mister Saitama didn't let me open my certificate because you were away! Hurry up!"

Genos hurriedly pulled on his clothes. "I apologise. I was asked to an interview. They were interested in us."

"Us?" Saitama asked, listening in. "As in us three?"

"Yes master. Specifically how we took down the House of Evolution."

"Why were they interested in those weaklings?" Holocho asked dismissively. "Whatever. You're here, so let's open these up!" He ferociously tore his envelope open to reveal a certificate. "Class B," he said, wincing. "What did you guys get?"

"B." Saitama said with a disappointed face.

"S." Genos said expressionlessly.

"Hey, how did you get S when you're so much weaker than us?" Holocho said, outraged.

"Look at your written test score."

"Huh? Ah…" Holocho said, burning bright red with shame as he looked at his score.

"If we got so low, how come we're B class?" Saitama asked, frowning at his written test score and overall score. "Not that I want to be C or anything…"

"I told them about your fights with Kabuto." Genos replied. "They seemed impressed, especially at you, master. You took him out with one blow even after he ascended into a supremely powerful form."

"Peh. He was weak."

"Who cares?" Holocho interjected. "We're heroes now! We'll become famous and everything!"

"Yes." Saitama said. "I'll become so famous that no-one will think I'm a terrorist again!"

Evidently the incidents that occurred yesterday had a large impact on him.

"Oh yeah?" Holocho challenged. "I'll become famous to the point people will bow down before me! I'll be S class rank 1!"

Saitama snorted. "Good luck, kid. I'll reach there before you."

"Never!"

* * *

A/N: And with that, the Race to the Top has officially started. Place your bets now, who will be the ultimate hero? Will the mysterious Blast be dethroned?

* * *

Review:

rmarcano321

What inspired me to start this story was probably because Saitama never had or has a real challenge. No one powerful enough to withstand his power. Also because he never got the recognition for his feats. I want to have a story where he actually gets suitable recognition and challenge.

That probably gave away that Holocho is going to give Saitama a challenge when they finally meet on the fighting ground, but who hasn't figured that out by this point?


	8. Fierce Flames

"Paging all successful candidates. There will be a seminar for successful hero candidates at 4 pm. Please come to lecture hall number 3"

"Let's go," Saitama said. "Let's get this over and done with. I'm hungry."

"But all we've been doing is standing around," Holocho protested.

"My stomach speaks for itself." Saitama said, walking off towards the lecture hall.

* * *

"We finally found the cyborg we've been looking for." a voice said on a phone.

A handsome, blue haired young man responded. "So I've heard."

"In consideration of his past accomplishments, we made an exception and certified him as an S - class hero. I just wanted to make sure you were notified of this."

"Yes. I approve." the blue haired man said, looking over at Genos's file.

"One other thing," the voice said.

"Yes?"

"Genos mentioned two other heroes who took the test with him. Apparently they are extremely strong - they broke every record in the fitness test."

"What about them?"

"Despite their exceedingly strong physical abilities, they've been placed in class B due to their sub-par intelligence."

"What are you trying to say?"

"I just want to inform you that they are people you may take a great interest in."

"What are their names?"  
"Saitama and Holocho."

* * *

The three successful candidates sat in lecture hall 3 - an ordinary lecture hall with a raised stage and podium at the front. Holocho and Saitama shared a desk while Genos sat to the right of Saitama. A skinny, pale man with wild black hair stood behind the podium. He was dressed in a formal suit and tie, his suit bearing the pattern of a brown snake hide.

"First, congratulations on passing," the man said, looking at the three new heroes. "Especially Genos, achieving class S immediately."

Genos nodded coolly.

"Not to say that class B is not good, you'll just have to work hard. Class B is a highly contested class, you'll have to give it your all to maintain your ranks."

The man pointed at Saitama and Holocho.

"Don't get full of yourselves! From here on, keep your hero status in mind and act honestly!" he shouted. Calming down, he continued: "After all, your faces will be placed on the Hero Association's website. Your heads will be shown to the whole world."

The trio nodded in understanding.

"If you do happen to act out of turn, I'll make you lose ranks and demote you! Be warned!"

* * *

The three heroes walked down the amber lit streets of the city. Because of the long time spent waiting for Genos to finish his interview, it was late evening and the trio were all quite hungry. Well, Genos wasn't, but he wanted food anyway.

"What shall we eat?" Genos asked. "I know a few good ramen places close by. Perhaps we could go in for dinner?"

"Sure, let's go. I don't care where, I just want some food. We can afford it now anyway as we're heroes."

The rumbling of Holocho's stomach spoke for itself.

The new heroes sat down at a small restaurant a few hundred meters away from Saitama's apartment and ordered food. They all chose the cheapest option - a medium - sized miso ramen. It was on a 20% off sale.

As they were waiting for their food, Genos remarked, while reading a Hero Association leaflet he was given, "the Hero Association's only been around for 3 years."

"3 years? Isn't that how long you've been doing hero stuff for?" Holocho said, nudging Saitama with his elbow.

"Yeah, I suppose so… It feels like such a short time though," Saitama said, thinking back to the past three years of his life as a hero.

"Apparently the founder, Agoni, had his son saved by some passer-by from a monster. He was so awe-inspired and grateful he used his fortune to found the Hero Association." Genos said, showing the picture of Agoni to Saitama and Holocho.

"Hey, that butt-chin looks familiar…" Saitama mused, looking at Agoni. "Of course! He's just like a butt-chinned kid I saved from a crab monster all those years back. That monster inspired me to become a hero."

Genos looked at Holocho, surprised.

"Is it possible…?" Genos started.

"That Saitama saved Agoni's kid?" finished Holocho.

"Yeah, probably," Saitama said off-handedly. "It was definitely a butt-chinned kid I saved."

"You gotta go tell Agoni!" Holocho exclaimed.

"Nah," Saitama said.

"Why not?" Holocho asked, unable to understand why Saitama wouldn't want the credit of saving the founder's son. "You'll become famous! You'll get to S rank instantly!"

"I don't want to be that famous." Saitama said, frowning. "If I'm that famous, reporters will come after me like mosquitoes."

"True, they would never let you rest," Genos agreed. "Master, I think your plan of action is a wise one."

"Of course you do," Holocho said, smirking.

Before Genos could reply, three bowls of miso ramen were laid on the table before them.

"Mouth-watering…" Saitama said, salivating at the sight. The three heroes immediately started digging into their food.

Half an hour later, the trio stood outside the restaurant after a delicious and satisfying meal.

"Master, I must go back to the doctor now." Genos stated. "But, with your permission, I will be moving in from tomorrow as I have officially become your disciple."

Saitama groaned internally. "I don't think we have enough space for you, Genos."

"It's fine, master. I can sleep standing up."

Saitama looked unconvinced.

"Also I can, as you said, do the housework and scare off door to door salesmen."

Saitama still had a frown on his face.

"I can also finance all your expenses with my plentiful S class hero salary."

"Excellent! Then by all means, move in tomorrow!" Saitama said, his frown breaking into a satisfied smile.

"It's always the money!" laughed Holocho.

"That is true," Saitama said to a startled Genos.

"Alright." Genos said. "Thank you, master. I promise from now on I will double my training efforts and be the best disciple I can!"

"Okay, okay," Saitama said, feeling slightly overwhelmed. "No need to be that enthusiastic-"

"I will do everything you say, whenever you say! Every training regimen, no matter how hard! I will complete every task you will give me as well as I can!" Genos shouted, earning a few odd looks from the patrons of the restaurant behind them.

"Anyway, master, I must be off. I will return to you tomorrow morning, ready to start my life as a disciple of the strongest in the world!"

With that, Genos leapt away, blasting off into the sunset towards Dr. Kuseno's lab, leaving behind intense streaks of exhaust from his rockets.

"Okay…"

"He's really eager to learn," Holocho commented.

"Yeah… that could be a pain…"

* * *

A warm wind swirled through the big, sand-red canyon picking up particles of sand and dirt as it blew past. Bright rays of sunlight shone down, emphasising the canyon's bright, vibrant colour. The three new heroes stood in the centre of the canyon. Genos and Saitama were dressed in their usual hero attire. Holocho was sporting a loose black t - shirt and shorts. A bright blue and white hurricane decorated the front of his t - shirt.

"Thank you for agreeing to my unreasonable request today." Genos said.

"It's fine," Saitama said. "I'm your master after all, I have to train you somehow."

Genos nodded in assent. "Shall we get ready?"

"I think you should spar with Holocho first," Saitama said. "He's kinda my disciple too."

"Really?" Holocho asked. "I think you're just being lazy!"

"No! It's not that!" Saitama frantically replied. "Having the two of you fight is the best way to assess your abilities!"

"Riiiiight…" Holocho drawled. "Fine, let's do this."

"I agree." Genos said. "Holocho, what are you wearing?"

"Ah! You noticed!" Holocho said, grinning. "This is my new hero costume!"

"Why the hurricane?" Genos asked.

"It looks cool!" exclaimed Holocho. He looked closely at Genos's arms. "You look different as well!"

"Yes. I have received upgrades that will improve my power and speed by a large margin." Genos responded.

"I guess this fight will be a great way to test your new stuff out!" Holocho said.

He jumped a small distance away from Genos. "Is this good?"

"Yes, Holocho!" Genos started.

"Alright!" Saitama said. "Are you ready?"

Both fighters nodded.

"Fight!"

Genos's body became a grey blur as he sped towards the small form of Holocho, his legs extended in a side kick aimed at Holocho's face. Seeing the incoming kick, Holocho quickly ducked and span around to face Genos as he sped away from him, carried by his momentum.

"Genos! It's fine if I damage you right?" Holocho called.

"Yes! Go all out!" Genos shouted back.

Holocho smiled slightly at Genos's words. In a blink of an eye, he was racing to Genos. He unleashed a barrage of blows, each one narrowly blocked or dodged by the surprised cyborg.

"Such speed…" Genos thought.

The blonde cyborg boosted away, landing on the top of a rock a fair distance away from Holocho. His arms were already battered and dented from Holocho's first volley of punches.

"I'll need to be careful to avoid his punches," he thought. Before he could react, a cracking sound pierced the air, heralding the sharp shock wave that crashed into Genos's stomach.

"Damn! I forgot about that!" Genos thought furiously. He responded with his own ranged attack. "Incinerate!"

Multiple yellow streaks of flame shot out of Genos's palm. Holocho frowned at this sight.

"Perhaps…?" Holocho thought as he thrust his palm at the incoming flames. His action caused a sharp snapping sound, producing a larger but slower shock wave that knocked into the cyborg's flames, stopping them in their tracks. "I'll call that… wave block!"

Genos, seeing the ineffectiveness of his attack, shot towards Holocho near the speed of sound. Eyes glowing yellow, he unleashed a flurry of blows at the boy.

"Machinegun blows!"

Holocho's eyes narrowed as he focused on blocking Genos's combo attack.

"There!" Holocho thought, seeing a slight opening in the cyborg's attack pattern. Using the opening, Holocho's fist shot forwards, crashing into Genos's chest, sending him hurtling away.

"Wave punch barrage!"

Holocho punched the air a hundred times in a span of a few seconds, using one of his hands to shoot devastating shock waves at the flying cyborg. Genos righted himself just in time to see the impending pain he faced. Eyes widening, he shot wide bursts of flame at the shock waves, trying to cancel them out. Unfortunately for him, Holocho's wave punches penetrated the formidable walls of flame, crashing into Genos's body as he performed evasive maneuvers to avoid as many shock waves as possible.

"Right incineration cannon offline." Genos thought grimly. "I need to stop him from wave punching!"

With that thought, Genos fired a series of flames towards Holocho. With ease, the boy dodged them all. "What was the point of that- oh."

Genos's flames had blasted up large clouds of dust, obscuring Holocho's vision. "Smart."

Suddenly, Genos appeared behind Holocho, striking the boy's back. Just as Holocho recovered from the surprise attack, Genos was gone, shooting multiple more yellow flames into the ground. He was using his ability to fly to his advantage, zipping about randomly to throw Holocho off in case he used the sound of his flight to pinpoint his location. Genos dived into the dust again, using his in-built infrared camera to locate Holocho. He quickly punched Holocho in the back again before flying up. From out of nowhere, hundreds of shock waves flew out from the dust aimed at random locations. Only one hit Genos, but it hit his booster, knocking him off balance and out of the sky.

As soon as the cyborg crashed into the ground, Holocho came running towards him. He swiftly avoided Genos's futile incineration blasts and kicked Genos's body, sending him crashing into the canyon wall, embedding him deep in the rock. He leapt up, intent on following up on his attack, but his fist was blocked by a red - gloved hand.

"That's enough." Saitama said firmly. "Any more and Genos is gonna turn into modern art again."

Holocho looked at Genos, stuck in the canyon wall. "Ah… I got carried away!"

"Pull him out," Saitama said. "I don't think he can get out himself."

A large explosion rocked the ground, accompanied by a bright flash of red light. The large, formidable wall of the canyon was incinerated, revealing a dented and scratched Genos barely standing amongst the wreckage. His yellow eyes flashed as he gathered his breath.

"I'm not done yet."

* * *

A/N: You've gotta admire Genos's perseverance. He knew he was fighting someone much stronger than him but he still gives it his all despite the odds.

* * *

Review:

rmarcano321:

What inspired Holocho's design was essentially just me wanting to write someone who is pretty much the opposite of Saitama. The caped baldy's emotions are dull, he always seems bored or tired. Holocho, on the other hand, is lively and his emotions are anything but dull.

Also, I want Saitama to be happy. Have a challenge in his otherwise boring life. (Video games don't count!) I feel sorry for him, he leads a life with pretty much no difficulty and purpose. Hopefully Holocho can provide that for him.

As for love interests… well I can say for certain Holocho won't be involved! Jokes aside, Saitama will probably be involved. I can't give much away…


	9. An Impenetrable Yellow Wall

"I'm not done yet," Genos said. He walked out of the crater with fire in his eyes, staring determinedly at Holocho.

"Genos! You gotta stop! You're gonna destroy yourself at this point!" the boy shouted in alarm.

"No." Genos said simply.

He grit his teeth in effort."200% power!"

Genos's body brightened in an explosion of light, his usual steady orange glow replaced by an unsteady crimson flickering. With a furious shout, Genos's body unleashed a barrage of lightning and flames, powering up, narrowly missing the two onlookers. An intense, baking heat emanated from the cyborg's body, heating up the air around him, causing his ragged blonde hair to float with the ascending air. Eventually, the flickering crimson light stabilised into a steady dark red glow.

"Dr. Kuseno made me capable of pushing my power core over its limits for brief amounts of time in moments of great need," Genos said, his face a mask of pain and determination. "I see this bout as an opportunity to test my cybernetic body to the limits."

"Sure! Come at me!" Holocho said enthusiastically, jumping a short distance away. "I'm ready!"

Genos looked at Saitama. The caped baldy shrugged. "As long as you don't burn my cape, go ahead."

Genos nodded grimly. "I shall avoid burning your cape with all my ability, master."

With his curt promise, he launched himself at Holocho, red lightning flickering around his glowing body. His foot rocket boosters fired into action, multiplying his speed many times over in the short distance between him and Holocho. He crossed his arms over his head, ramming full speed into Holocho's chest, catching the child by surprise.

"He's way faster than before!" Holocho thought as he flew backwards from the force of Genos's ramming attack. Genos seized the brief moment of Holocho's incapacitation to fly behind the boy, punching him hard in the back. Holocho gasped in shock, crashing into the ground. He quickly recovered, standing up just in time to receive a storm of metal and flames.

"Machinegun blows!"

Genos's fists flew rapidly at the boy with enough force to level a small mountain. Holocho, seeing the imminent danger, moved his palms rapidly to meet the furious cyborg's punches. Every single one of Genos's blows were met by Holocho's hands.

Genos grunted in frustration, seeing how his hits weren't doing any damage apart to himself. "80% total power to arms! Super machinegun blows!"

The velocity of his strikes increased exponentially as the cyborg released a stronger version of his trademark attack. Holocho's eyes widened as what looked like a cloud of fists approached him. He frantically ducked and weaved in front of the storm of blows, his hands moving to meet any punches that he couldn't dodge. Sparks of lightning and tongues of flame punctuated each clash of fist and palm, surrounding the pair in a whirlwind of fire and electricity. The boy's mind whirred in thought as he tried to think of a counter to Genos's seemingly never-ending attack, at this rate a punch was going to get through and ruin his new hero costume! Amongst the grey blur of the cyborg's fists, Holocho's sharp eyes saw a brief opening in Genos's assault. He used the split-second opportunity to thrust his palm at the cyborg's torso, pushing a large pulse of air at Genos. The pulse of air sent the unprepared cyborg tumbling away towards the canyon wall, but before he could crash into it again, Genos quickly righted himself before collecting his thoughts.

"A direct assault isn't working. Surrounding him with dust clouds didn't work. I must employ a different strategy to win this battle."

Genos's cybernetic mind quickly ran simulations based on the current data he had on Holocho. A second later he came up with a potential strategy.

Holocho stood, gazing at Genos's dull red form in the distance. Just as he was about to ask him what the wait was about, the cyborg's body blurred, moving quickly to a position high in the sky above Holocho.

"Why…? Ah! Crap!"

Genos's body produced an intense orange wall of fire, threatening to engulf Holocho and all the surrounding land with an inferno. Holocho panicked, seeing how much of a dangerous position his new costume was in and threw up a hasty defence to prevent the burning of his clothes.

"Wave block wall!" he shouted, naming his new defensive move. A flurry of wide shockwaves crashed into the descending flames, completely halting them in their tracks. However, the flames never seemed to stop. Instead, they grew more and more intense, forcing the boy to increase the speed of his wave blocks. Suddenly, a glowing red metal fist shot out from amidst the flames, accompanied by the crimson body of Genos. Caught by surprise, Holocho couldn't defend against Genos's surprise attack and was left helpless as the cyborg's fist crashed into his chest, crashing into the floor.

Holocho frantically rolled around on the floor, trying to extinguish the flames that Genos's blow had given him. As soon as his costume was fire free, he shot to his feet, ready for the cyborg's next move. Genos was already attacking. Massive bursts of flame shot out of his only remaining incineration cannon, releasing searing heat that caused sweat to appear on Holocho's body.

"He's gonna roast me like this!" Holocho thought as he half blocked and half dodged away from the red cyborg. Genos seemed to have anticipated Holocho's retreat. Bursting through his flames once again, Genos rammed his fist into Holocho's torso. The boy was flung backwards. The cyborg sped behind the stunned boy and crashed a kick onto Holocho's back, sending him flying into the dying flames.

"No no no!" Holocho exclaimed, rolling on the floor, desperately putting out the flames on his t-shirt. As soon as he had finished saving his clothes from the flames, he stood up, ready for any more assaults.

He was greeted by the sight of a massive incineration cannon pointed directly at his face.

"Dang it!"

A colossal beam of orange flame fired out from Genos's arms, engulfing the helpless boy completely. The fire roared and crackled as it shot all the way to the opposite end of the canyon, burning a giant hole through the wall as it died out. As the smoke cleared, it revealed a large, soot-blackened boy. Somehow, all his clothes were untouched, only covered by soot.

"I'm gonna name that defensive move 'power blow'!" Holocho exclaimed, smiling. His white teeth contrasted with his blackened face.

"Impossible…" Genos gasped. Black smoke rose from his mouth as he coughed and spluttered in shock.

"Possible! Nice attack, Genos! Let's continue!" Holocho chirped.

However, Genos was in no condition to continue the fight. He was kneeling on the floor, smoke rising out of his ears and open mouth as he panted from the exertion of his attack. His body had cooled back to its normal shade of grey and his eyes were fading to a smouldering orange colour. His blonde hair was half black from the soot from his intense flame attacks.

"Power core exhausted," he said grimly.

"Oh… Here, I'll help you to the side," Holocho said, slinging one of Genos's arms over his shoulder and dragging him to the side of the canyon.

"Thank you. You were a formidable opponent." Genos said. "I will aim to surpass you the best I can." Genos's eyes widened. "You are not tired at all from the fight! I didn't do any damage!"

Holocho nodded. "Improve the best you can, Genos! I look forward to our next fight!"

Genos nodded slowly. "I am out of my league." he thought.

"Hey! Mister Saitama!" Holocho shouted. "Let's spar!"

Saitama jerked awake. "Wha-?" He stood up from where he was previously sleeping, on the canyon floor. "Alright."

The caped baldy patted himself down with his red gloves. He then turned to face the blackened Holocho. "Come."

Holocho jogged towards Saitama, looking at him cautiously. "You're not gonna attack?" he asked.

"I'm still feeling a bit sleepy-"

Saitama was cut off by the force of a wave punch narrowly missing his head as he barely dodged it.

"Hey! That's dirty!" he shouted.

His response was a barrage of wave punches, but each and every one was dodged by a half bored Saitama. Holocho looked on at Saitama's dodging worriedly. He was too slow, he would need to seriously increase his speed to even touch Mister Saitama. Holocho extended his fingers in a finger gun. He then jabbed repeatedly at the air, with much greater force this time. Multiple higher pitched snapping sounds were produced, along with thinner but significantly faster bursts of air that raced towards Saitama. They were all also hardheartedly dodged by Saitama.

Holocho grimaced. Great. He was still too slow. Whatever. By now, he had jogged to a relatively close distance to the caped baldy. With a grunt, the boy launched himself at Saitama, narrowly missing him with a punch that could have levelled a mountain. Holocho quickly landed, leaping again at Saitama. Saitama, seeing this, took off as well, shooting towards Holocho's direction. The two speeding forms caused trails of dust to form behind them as they arced and clashed repeatedly. Violent shockwaves were formed as Holocho struck and Saitama blocked, slicing into the canyon walls, causing rock falls. Craters were littered about the ground, the results of their explosive clashes.

The boy yelled in frustration at the futile nature of his punches. None were getting through Saitama's guard. He grit his teeth and grabbed at Saitama's arm as they flew through the air. He used Saitama's arm to slam him into a wall. As soon as Saitama realised what was going on, he was being slammed into the floor repeatedly. Saitama frowned and chopped at Holocho's hand with his free arm, causing Holocho to yelp in pain and release him. Saitama jumped away to recover his bearings.

"You're doing better than I expected, kid." Saitama acknowledged. His heart began to beat faster.

"I'm not strong enough!" Holocho shouted, launching himself at Saitama with all his might. Saitama, caught off guard, watched in surprise as the boy's fist hit his stomach, sending him flying away. Holocho vanished, reappearing behind Saitama. He chopped at the base of Saitama's neck, making him tumble onto the ground where he lay for a few seconds.

Holocho took advantage of Saitama's situation and kicked his body into the air and spiked it into the nearby canyon wall, causing a shower of rubble to fall over Saitama.

The caped baldy lay amongst the rubble, stunned. Did he just feel… pain? He rubbed the back of his neck where Holocho had hit earlier. There it was, a faint ghost of pain. But before he could dwell on that, His leg was forcefully grabbed and pulled out of the rubble along with his body. Holocho swung Saitama round and round and flung him into the sky.

"TEMPEST STRIKE!"

Holocho's newly named attack crashed into the vulnerable form of Saitama, Numerous fist-sized shockwaves pummelled Saitama, tearing multiple holes into his yellow costume. Holocho was giving it his all, using both his fists to produce the thousands of shockwaves that struck Saitama. The force of the combined shockwaves kept Saitama from being able to stabilise himself, causing him to land in an undignified heap on the canyon floor. As soon as he had landed, Holocho was upon him, striking blow after blow. Saitama wasn't having it. With a sweep of his arm, he knocked Holocho back.

"Let me return the favour. Consecutive Normal Punches."

Fury descended upon Holocho. All he saw was a blur of red and yellow as a thousand punches impacted his cross guard in a span of a mere second. His skin was blackened from bruises that formed from Saitama's assault parts of his skin were torn away, leaving blood to flow freely from his forearms.

"Not a single broken bone," Saitama observed. "Astonishing!" His expression began to morph from a frown to one of interest.

"But not enough!" Holocho shouted in frustration. "I need more power!"

The boy grit his teeth and tensed all his muscles. He jumped forward, breaking the sound barrier. His arm was extended, trying to punch Saitama in the face. He was blocked, and before he could react, Saitama punched him in the stomach, sending him stumbling back, spitting. Holocho grimaced in pain.

"Was that only a normal punch? Nothing more?"

"Yes."

"Moles in Hell, this is gonna be a hard fight." Holocho sighed. Then he yelled, throwing a wild haymaker at Saitama. The caped hero effortlessly ducked under it, punching at Holocho's stomach. However, Holocho was prepared for that. Using his other palm, he redirected the punch away from his stomach. Saitama had overextended and was unprepared for the counter stumbling forward. Holocho quickly side stepped and pushed the off-balance Saitama sending him falling onto the ground. He took advantage of this and stamped Saitama's gut, causing a crater to form from the force behind the stamp. Holocho stamped again, burying the hero further into the ground. He then kicked Saitama's prone form into the air and proceeded to attack him with a barrage of blows from different directions. He punched Saitama, sending him flying, then appeared behind Saitama's body, punching him back. Holocho's form flickered and blurred as he zipped around Saitama's airborne body, punching him repeatedly from different directions, keeping him in the air. To finish his combo, Holocho briefly paused in his attack, preparing to land one more final blow that would knock Saitama deep underground. But Saitama had disappeared.

Holocho whirled around to see Saitama about to punch him right in the chest. His eyes were shaded as he cocked his fist back. The boy frantically redirected Saitama's punch upwards, leaving the caped hero's chest exposed. Holocho repeatedly jabbed at it, causing Saitama to gasp and step back, and followed up with a powerful side kick. However, his foot was grabbed by Saitama's iron grip and Holocho was whirled around and whipped into the ground where he lay, groaning. But he wasn't finished. After a brief respite, Holocho exploded into action, punching and kicking at Saitama. All his blows were met by solid steel blocks, causing more harm to Holocho than Saitama. Saitama began punching back, causing Holocho to focus more on defending and dodging rather than a straight-on attack, but he still let out one or two jabs from time to time, trying to exploit every opportunity given, despite however small they were. The pair were in a deadlock - Saitama was too durable and strong, Holocho was too nimble and small. Saitama darted to Holocho's side, trying to catch him off guard, but Holocho simply moved to face him, blocking the incoming strike. Saitama grinned and darted around Holocho, making him frantically move to deflect the hailstorm of blows. The pair took off, Saitama darting at Holocho, attempting to strike him, and Holocho twisting and dodging, trying desperately to avoid being hit at all costs, for he knew that a single hit would render him vulnerable to a world of pain.

Genos looked on in awe. His master and Holocho were simply blurs to him, but he knew a momentous battle was ongoing by the amount of destruction the two were giving off. From their punches, deep craters were forming and the surrounding canyon was being broken apart from the hurricane-force winds given off by their punches and blocks. What was most strange to him, however, were the expressions on the pair's faces. Holocho's was of pure concentration and determination while Saitama's was one of… joy?

Saitama had a slight smile on his face as he battled with Holocho. Never before had someone provided so much of a challenge to him before. Even if he was slow to get going, Holocho was providing him with a somewhat difficult time, darting about and blocking his normal punches, a feat which no human or monster had performed before. He saw great potential in the young hero. Perhaps he could be the one that will reignite his true joy of battle?

* * *

A/N: Boy, this is quite a fight. I will finish it off next chapter, it's getting quite late here!

* * *

Reviews:

rmarcano321: Happy October to you too!

Venom (guest): Thank you so much for your support! This fanfic will definitely continue for quite a while, don't worry. Also, I think your review was in Spanish so I'll use google translate this response.

¡Muchas gracias por su apoyo! Este fanfic definitivamente continuará por bastante tiempo, no te preocupes. Además, creo que su comentario fue en español, así que usaré Google traduce esta respuesta.


	10. Ultimate Technique

Explosive shockwaves and tremors were released from the clash between the two supremely powerful heroes. To the ordinary human eye, two blurred forms trailing streaks of dust were flying quickly across the crater - littered canyon, clashing rapidly, each clash releasing a powerful shockwave and a series of tremors which crumbled the canyon walls around them. Genos's cybernetic eyes and mind could barely track and process their actions, Saitama and Holocho seemed more like black and yellow hazes as they fought. He had taken refuge in the air, using the last of his drained energy to keep him airborne high in the sky, away from the fight. It would be suicidal to stay down there - the mere shockwaves alone from the fight could easily slice the cyborg in half before he could think.

"They're amazing… and to think I fought him… I never realised how much stronger Holocho was than me." Geno's thought in awe. "Their stamina seems endless… they've been going at this for half an hour already and not one of them shows even the slightest bit of fatigue."

However, the opposite was true for Holocho. For the past 10 minutes, he had barely been able to block Saitama's punches let alone dodge them. Multiple bruises dotted his and chest and legs, making his movements painful. Saitama, on the other hand, looked to be having the time of his life. His superhero suit was slightly ripped in places, revealing faint bruises as he hadn't bothered to block Holocho's punches, but other than that, he was completely fine and seemed to be able to go on like this forever. Holocho knew that if he didn't do something drastic, he would most definitely lose the fight. As he frantically blocked and dodged a flurry of blows from Saitama, a plan started forming in his mind.

Due to Saitama's improvised fighting style, it was hard to predict where Saitama would hit next, but Holocho had experienced enough of Saitama's attacks to have a rough estimate of his attack pattern. Saitama finished his flurry of attacks with a devastating uppercut that caught Holocho's chin, sending him flipping over backwards. He rushed forward to drive home a punishing blow, but his punch travelled straight through Holocho's body. Saitama frowned in confusion, but he was shocked into action by a solid blow to his back. He whirled around, striking blindly, hitting air. A strange light laugh echoed across the canyon. Saitama looked up to see a large ring of people surrounding him. Strangely, the ring of people was flickering and faint, but what was most peculiar about this was that everyone in the crowd seemed to be… Holocho?

"Kid?" Saitama asked.

"This is my new technique: afterimage typhoon!" all of the Holochos said in unison. The sound their voice made was peculiar - it seemed to come from everywhere at once. Saitama huffed. "Party tricks like this won't work on me." He jumped forward, punching at a Holocho, but his fist went straight through him. Suddenly, he was knocked back into the centre of the ring by an invisible force, sending him staggering.

Genos couldn't believe his eyes. Holocho didn't seem to have a limit to his creativity - he was making up moves as he went along! But what was unbelievable was how easy Holocho made his technique look. He was casually dodging Saitama's attacks and counter attacking at Saitama's weak spots like fluid water. The bald hero couldn't break out of the ring - every time he charged towards the boundary, he was knocked back into the centre. Steadily, the speed of Holocho's attacks grew until Saitama could no longer defend against the assault - punches rained down on the defenceless hero from all directions, incapacitating him, restricting his movements. Saitama's face grew sharp and serious as he started feeling the effects of Holocho's continuous attack. His hero costume was ripped and torn, his light bruises were darkening as Holocho targeted them repeatedly. Saitama acknowledged that, if this attack continued any longer, his costume would be destroyed. And that would be unacceptable. With a grunt, he brought his hands together in a deafening horizontal clap. A razor-sharp shockwave arced outwards from his hands, slicing into the ring of Holochos before they could react. The afterimages suddenly disappeared, revealing the true Holocho being knocked into the ground by the force of the shockwave. Crashing into the floor, Holocho grunted in pain as he landed in a heap. A horizontal line of dark blue bruises were blossoming on his chest, making the slightest movement of his arms set his chest alight with pain. He struggled to his feet, gritting his teeth to face a serious Saitama.

"It's about time we end this." he said with finality.

"No!" Holocho shouted. "I can still-"

Saitama disappeared from view, stunning Holocho into silence. His jaw dropped. The way he moved… it was magnitudes faster than before! He heard the swish of clothes behind him. He whirled around to see a red-gloved fist racing towards his head. It was too late for him to react. The velocity of the punch rendered him helpless, making him a mere spectator of his doom. The fist stopped a hair's breadth from his face. Intense gales of wind from the force of the punch buffeted Holocho's face as he stood in utter shock. The winds gradually died away, leaving Holocho standing with an open mouth. His short black hair had been blown straight up.

"Come on!" Saitama said cheerfully, tapping on Holocho's bare forehead with his knuckle. "Let's go get some udon. I'm starving."

The caped baldy strolled away.

"And to think I had a chance against him… he's leagues above me in every way…"

Holocho turned to see a massive hole in the thick canyon wall, tunnelling through it and multiple canyons behind it. This was caused by the wind of just one punch from Saitama.

"I want to be as strong as him… It's going to be a long road if I am to reach even half of his power, but I'm prepared to give it my all to become stronger."

"Hurry up! I'm quite hungry!" Saitama shouted, walking away in the distance causing Genos to quickly land next to him.

Holocho slowly nodded his head. "Coming!"

* * *

Far away, a young, blue haired man studied a series of satellite images. Each of them showed different stages of the trio's fights. The man looked at the last image. A battlefield, craters dotting the ground like the surface of the moon, rubble collapsed cliffs resembling the aftermath of a war between armies. He frowned.

"You said they were the B class heroes?"

* * *

The afternoon had gone by quickly. The three new heroes had shown up at the Noodle House beaten and dirty; the manager didn't know what to do with them. He had recognised the heroes, but to see them in this state? Should he call the association? Nonetheless, the trio had sat down at a table and waited patiently to be served. After lunch, Genos had departed to Dr Kuseno, promising to return in time for dinner. Saitama and Holocho went all the to the Hero Association in City A to repair their costumes (it said on the introductory leaflet that costume repairs and upgrades were supplied for free, Saitama couldn't let such a good opportunity go to waste). Their costumes were returned after a brief wait, upgraded to be much more durable yet still as flexible, it usually cost quite a bit for that sort of upgrade, but as soon as they saw the state Saitama and Holocho were in, they hurriedly did it for free. They couldn't have heroes walking around like that, all beaten and clothes torn, huh? It would damage the face of the Hero Association!

Saitama kept his usual yellow outfit with boots, gloves and cape, but Holocho asked for a few changes. Specifically, he asked for a more tightly fitting black long sleeved tracksuit and trousers, a sharp, blue and white hurricane emblazoned on the front right breast area and a larger hurricane on the back of the tracksuit top. A dull black metal zip ran down the centre of the tracksuit. His tracksuit bottoms were somewhat featureless apart from two deep pockets on the sides. He also ordered a pair of hardy but flexible black trainers. These ones would be leagues better than any ordinary trainers (much more lightweight, durable and comfortable) - they were designed by specialists in the Hero Association! He wanted to be able to move freely in his outfit as well as be somewhat protected from the elements, he didn't want to be freezing cold in the winter months when the temperature plummeted to single digit temperatures. The Hero Association delivered perfectly.

After their trip to City A, they found it was getting quite dark. They had done a bit of shopping in the richest city in the world, Holocho getting a tough black headband (he rather liked the new spiky - hair Saitama's finishing blow had given him) and Saitama bought an excellent quality toilet plunger that was 90% off. (I mean, why not?) The pair ran back to City Z, quickly running along the long roads that spanned the super continent. To them, they jogged at a leisurely pace, but they were simply streaks of yellow and black to drivers they passed. They arrived at their front door only 20 minutes later, barely affected by their super-humanly fast run from one side of the super continent to the other. Just as Saitama was going to unlock the door, it was promptly opened by a metallic arm.

"Welcome home, master, Holocho," Genos said formally. He moved to the side, letting them walk into the small apartment.

"Hold on," Holocho said, closing the door behind them, "How'd you get in?"

"I picked the lock," Genos said said, showing him his array of in-built lock picking tools. "I hope you don't mind that, sensei?"

"Not at all," Saitama said. "Look at all this food!"

A vast array of different dishes were arrayed on the table and more were sitting in the kitchen, releasing a delicious aroma. Holocho and Saitama's mouths were salivating already, all woes forgotten. They hurriedly sat down and prepared to eat.

"I have prepared a meal for us using the finest ingredients from only the biggest sales." Genos said as they ate, sitting down next to them. "I asked Dr Kuseno for housekeeping upgrades, one of them including cooking - I can now make any dish known to man provided I have the right materials."

His only response was the sounds of chewing and chopsticks. Holocho gave him a thumbs up.

They quickly finished the meal, Holocho and Saitama stuffing themselves to the fullest. Saitama fell asleep, relaxed and content with the food he had just eaten. Holocho groaned. "Genos, your food was great! Next time don't prepare as much…"

"I shall take your feedback into consideration, thank you." Genos responded.

"Don't you have to eat too?" Holocho asked. Genos hadn't touched a single noodle during the hour long meal.

"No, my only sustenance needed is electricity, my power core takes care of that." the cyborg responded, patting his chest.

"Then why did you eat yesterday? And the day before?"

"I eat for taste and enjoyment, other than that food is unnecessary for me." Genos said. Predicting Holocho's next question, he said, "All food goes to a micro incinerator in my torso, hence I do not need to dispose of waste food."

"That's so cool… oh, by the way, what games do you have installed in you again?"

"As I said before, Fort-"

A series of sharp knocks from the door broke Genos off.

Genos shot to his feet and strode to the door, opening it. A handsome young man with long, blue hair stood casually outside.

"I'm Amai Mask, class A rank 1. Would you care to join me outside for a small chat?" he said, smiling slightly. His features oozed charm and confidence.

"I shall," Genos said. "I won't be long, Holocho." He strode outside, closing the door behind him.

Holocho watched him leave with confusion. That Amai Mask sure was charming… but something felt off about him…

* * *

"I hear you were certified class S by special exception." Amai Mask said, looking Genos directly in the eyes.

"What of it?" Genos replied curtly.

"A professional hero must always be a beautiful symbol of justice," the blue-haired man said. "That is my philosophy. It's especially true if you're an S class hero."

Genos stared at Amai Mask, frowning.

"Come on, there's no need to glare at me," Amai Mask said, smiling. "I came all the way here to see you."

He paused and looked around at his surroundings. "Speaking of which, why are you living in a place like this? A hero like you should be in a prestigious penthouse at least."

"My master lives here."

"Oh? And who is that?" This was getting interesting.

"Master Saitama."

"Saitama…Ah, I see. The one with remarkable physical qualities. Might I ask - is Holocho here as well?"

"Yes, he was the child you saw earlier." Genos gestured towards the door of the apartment.

The blue-haired man considered this for a moment. "Well, it's your choice. This area does need a few actual heroes. It is quite under-protected after all," he said.

"Why are you here?" Genos said, getting impatient. "Cut the fluff. Are you here to fight?"

He stepped towards the blue-haired man.

Amai Mask raised a single hand, stopping Genos.

"Being hot-blooded is fine," he said. "But if you take it too far…"

He smiled crookedly. "You'll be burnt."

He relaxed. "Thank you for your time. I welcome you to the team. We expect great things from you and will be monitoring you and your companions closely, Genos."

Amai Mask walk away slowly, leaving Genos wondering about the whole encounter. What was Amai Mask's ulterior motive? He couldn't have come all this way to have a small talk. His wandering thoughts were interrupted by the opening of the door.

"Is that weird man gone yet?" Holocho's young voice asked impatiently. "You gotta come back and help clear up the dishes!"

A gust of wind heralded the swift return of the 'weird man'.

"What makes you say I'm weird, child?" Amai Mask asked condescendingly. "Don't worry, you're not in any trouble, I'm just curious as to why a lowly B rank would say such bold words within earshot of me, Amai Mask."

"Jeez, you're insecure," Holocho responded. "I only called you weird because of your blue hair, it's no biggie."

"Insecure?" the man said with a haughty smile on his face. "Count yourself lucky I'm in a good mood today, child. I have punished people for far less, petty insults like that are below us and show a lack of grace."

Amai Mask tilted his head slightly towards the sky. "Heroes are the face of justice, the protectors of the weak. We must act with beauty and honour, for anything less would lower us to the level of mere humans we are role models for."

With a flourish, he walked away, head held high. As soon as he disappeared from sight, Holocho snorted. "That guy's over the top. Honour this. Beauty that. Now, Genos, come help me with the dishes!"

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading guys. Half term break is here, which is great! Hope you all have a good week(s) of rest.

* * *

Review:

rmarcano321:

Thanks for your reviews.

As you saw this chapter, Holocho got a new costume which is more durable.

During the monster association arc, Holocho will destroy every monster that dares to face him, how many he destroys will depend on what path he chooses to take!

Holocho's monster form would be interesting to think about. I'd say he'd be a small, nimble monster that utilises wave attacks to a great degree based on his fighting style. He would be near unstoppable, maybe even Blast would reveal himself to stop him? It's a lot to consider.

About that game, 'Road to Hero', I have it, and think it's decent. I like the cut scenes which show stuff from the actual anime. But, I think they should let the player control each individual character during combat more, to me it seems too automatic - the player only controls the special attacks, everything else is done for the player. It's a great game in general from what I've played though.


	11. A True Hero

"Hahaha! I, Punk Rockstar, will shatter your bones with my guitar's hyper-sonic waves!" a tall, muscular monster roared. Wearing black leather pants, vest and boots, he looked like your standard punk, albeit on some serious steroids. He carried a large black axe guitar, the blade sharpened to a deadly extent. "I listened to too much rock, now I have become rock!"

Holocho was unfazed. "You gonna attack me or what?"

The monster howled in laughter. He bent forward, getting right in Holocho's face. "Why aren't you running, little boy? Oh, don't tell me, you're one of those heroes sent to stop me!"

Holocho gave no response, he just glared up at the leering monster. It straightened and announced, "Well, enjoy getting your bones shattered by my ultimate technique: Hyper-sonic Riff-"

Holocho's body flickered slightly. To an ordinary human, Holocho didn't move an inch, but to the trained eye, Holocho sprung up and launched a devastating roundhouse kick to the monster's head, snapping it clean off. The mohawked head tumbled onto the floor alongside its body, dark brown blood pooling around it.

"Easy as pie," Holocho said, turning around and walking away. The crowd behind him gasped and whispered to each other.

"Who is he?"

"Isn't he meant to be a B class?"

"But he decapitated that monster effortlessly!"

"That hurricane on his shirt… It's Brutal Tempest!"

For the past five days, Holocho and Saitama had been patrolling the streets of City Z. With the challenge of who could rise to S class rank 1 first, the new heroes had been frantically trying to find and defeat as many monsters as possible. Their efforts had been largely successful, with many people now recognising them on sight. However, they hadn't been working together. Holocho had swiftly exited the apartment in the morning after Amai Mask's visit, Saitama and Genos quickly following. From the beginning, it had been a furious race to see who would defeat the most monsters.

Holocho had been the most enthusiastic, running from street to street, exploring every nook and cranny of the city to find any monster lurking in the shadows. Inspired by Saitama's lack of fame, he had tossed monsters into broad view of the general public to defeat them all with a single kick to the skull. Now he was known for his brutal attacks, cold demeanour and swift fights. He really had no patience towards monsters, him being kidnapped by them playing a large role in his ruthlessness. That's not to say he was like that to humans, though.

Saitama and Genos, on the other hand, had stuck to the rooftops. From their heightened points of view, they had a good view of what was going on in many of the streets of the city. They would swiftly descend, targeting and eliminating each monster they saw before they could cause any real harm. For that reason, Saitama was now called the 'Flying Baldy' based on his attacks from the air as he jumps down from the roofs, and Genos, the 'Cyborg Guardian', based on his cyborg body and how he seemed to kill monsters just in the nick of time before someone was killed.

"Aw man, why do they call me a 'Flying Baldy'?" Saitama groaned. He had just finished off some random wolf monster (Wolf's bang? He didn't and couldn't be asked to remember) and the bystanders were thanking him -

"Thanks, Flying Baldy! You really saved me!"

"Flying Baldy, you're the best!"

It really grated on his nerves to be called that, it made him seem like some sort of lame kid's TV show action hero.

"At least you got a cool name, Cyborg Guardian, that's a great name! It sounds respectable. Not 'Flying Baldy'." Saitama said exasperatedly to Genos. He said his hero name with spite.

"Your nickname isn't that bad," Genos said, trying to placate Saitama. "It's unique. Also, you'll receive a better nickname as you rise through the ranks."

Saitama perked up. "That's true. You can't have a hero with such a lame name in S class." He frowned. "Still, I'm stuck with my stupid nickname for at least a few months." He pointed his finger at Genos. "You should be grateful for your name."

"Speaking of which, I don't understand why they call me Cyborg Guardian," Genos said after some thought. "It's just coincidence that I show up just in time to save them, or that I come from above."

"Think of it this way: you look cool with your fire and stuff while you kill the monsters in a single blow, people are bound to call you something cool," Saitama said.

Genos gasped. "What an insight! What you are saying is the art of psychological combat: shock and awe tactics can be used to stun opponents and restore public faith in heroes while being an effective way to fight. My speed is the shock and my flames are the awe. What you imply is that I should build my fighting style around quick and brutal attacks accompanied by fierce bursts of flame. Thank you, master, for your wisdom!"

"Uh… okay…" Saitama said, watching Genos furiously scribble down his 'wisdom' into a notepad.

"Hey guys!" Holocho shouted as he landed next to the duo. "How many monsters did you lot kill today?"

"Just that one," Saitama said, pointing down at the carcass of the wolf monster.

"Disappointing, baldy!" Holocho teased. "I killed two today! People are starting to recognise me now!"

"Hey, stop calling me that, shorty!" Saitama said in mock outrage, causing Holocho to snort. "The number of monsters doesn't really count, it's the level that matters. Ours was a tiger level threat. Yours?"

Holocho rubbed the back of his head. "Both were wolf…"

"Exactly."

"But people know me better!" Holocho replied, grinning. "Check those popularity rankings! Check our hero rankings too."

"Wait a moment please," Genos said, connecting to the internet via his in-built computer. "Master… B class rank 9, Holocho… B class rank 10."

Saitama smiled smugly, crossing his arms. "You see the difference? At this rate, S class rank 1 will be mine."

Holocho huffed. "Sure… Genos, what about our popularity ratings?"

"Master: B class number 29. Holocho: B class number 8."

Saitama exploded. "8th?! How?!"

Genos read the comments aloud. "'A role model of how to be a hero - fearless, swift and ruthless'. 'A rookie showing great potential despite his age'. 'He's saved my life, thanks!'. 'Doesn't drag things out'. 'Can't wait to see him in S class.' Those sort of comments. They seem to like Holocho for his… brutality. Potential. In fact, one comment reads: 'His age shows that heroes could appear in all sorts of shapes and sizes, children are going to look up to-"

"I get it, I get it!" Saitama shouted irritably. "Stop praising him!"

"Master, I'm not-"

"Look up my profile, Genos!"

"Yes master." Genos said, his internal computer beeping and whirring as he searched up the Flying Baldy.

"Reviews are as follows: 'Why is he always on the rooftops? He's weird'. 'He's always with Cyborg Guardian. Anyone who's with that guy's gotta be really cool'. 'His costume is jarring'. 'Eh, he's alright. His baldness is so weird though, why would anyone be bald at his age?'"

Saitama groaned. "Why is it always the baldness?" he said, scratching his head. "I can't do anything about it."

Holocho reached up and patted Saitama's back. "Don't worry. When I'm top hero I can buy you some hair implants."

"I don't want any," Saitama, sighing.

Genos, listening in, frowned. "Why? I'm sure Dr. Kuseno would be perfectly willing to gift you hair implants."

"It's embarrassing!" Saitama exclaimed. He then jabbed a finger at Holocho. "Also, I'm going to be S class rank 1. Enjoy second place, shorty!"

"Baldy!"

"The sun's set. Shall we go home to eat?" Genos said after Saitama and Holocho's mock argument died down. His amber eyes were burning brightly in the fading light. "I believe we have a reasonable amount of fresh vegetables in the pantry."

"Sure, let's go."

* * *

"Genos, you're amazing at cooking!" exclaimed Holocho. They had just finished a delicious restaurant - standard meal of their all time favourite, Miso Ramen. Due to Genos's perfect precision and accuracy, the meal had been prepared to the finest standards.

"Due to my vast database of meals stored within me, we won't have to go out to eat," Genos said. "Also, you seem to like my meals."

"They are good," Saitama agreed. "We can also save much more money by preparing and eating at home, I'm much of a cook myself so I'm glad we've got a housekeeping robot to take care of the food."

Holocho laughed. "Hear that, Genos? You're an excellent house maid," he said, nudging the cyborg's ribs.

Genos smiled slightly in amusement. "I do have the most up-to-date housekeeping modules installed."

"Housekeeping modules? How are they even a thing?" Saitama asked. "It sounds like something out of a sci fi."

Genos looked at him in confusion. "Master, I'm not sure what you mean."

"You know? Those housekeeping robots in sci fi TV shows?" Saitama attempted.

Seeing Genos's blank look, Holocho smiled and said, "I don't think Genos knows what sci fi even is."

"Seriously?" Saitama asked, bewildered. "You don't know Star Walk? Star Battles?"

Genos shook his head for each of Saitiama's prompts. "I'm afraid I don't know what you are talking about, master."

Saitama sighed in frustration. "You barely had a childhood, didn't you?"

"I'm afraid my home village was rather isolated, we didn't have any wireless fidelity nor any electrical forms of entertainment. We were cut off from most of the world."

"Wireless fidelity…?" Holocho asked. "The heck is that?"

"I believe we call it 'WiFI'" Genos said.

"Then why didn't you say that?" Holocho asked in exasperation.

But before Genos could reply, someone knocked loudly on the door. Genos opened the door in a flash.

"Class B rank 9-" a man in a black suit authoritatively started before Genos appeared right in front of him. "Hold on, aren't you that new class S hero? Genos?"

"I am. What is it?" Genos said, staring intensely at the man.

Instead of replying, the man looked anxiously at a woman standing behind him. She stepped forward. The woman was clad in a dark green, form-fitting dress, two silver necklaces hanging around the collar. A short, fluffy white coat was draped over her shoulders.

"I am sorry for disturbing you, Genos," she said. Her voice was cold and sharp. "Are Saitama and Holocho in?"

"What do you want from them?" Genos asked curtly. "You are Hellish Blizzard, correct?"

She nodded. "I am."

"I have data stating you to be a notorious rookie crusher. Are you here to 'crush' master and Holocho?"

Fubuki's eyes widened slightly. With a class S hero present, she would have to choose her words carefully. "I am here to welcome them to the ranks of class B heroes. Also to invite them to join my Blizzard Group."

Genos regarded her suspiciously.

"And by 'invite', do you mean issue an ultimatum of 'join or be pummelled'?" Holocho shouted down the hallway. Before Fubuki could reply, Holocho appeared in front of Genos, an impish grin on his face. "Does that mean you'll try and fight us?"

Fubuki's mind was in turmoil. Such speed! She convinced herself that she was not seeing things correctly. Either he was using illusions or he has a fatal weakness. She glanced at Genos. His face gave nothing away. Fubuki composed herself internally - despite her cold appearance, her mind was struggling to cope with the events that had just happened.

"It is not necessary to fight, Brutal Tempest," she said. "I have heard of your great potential. The promising power you've shown in only five days of being a hero. Join us, the Blizzard Group. I will give you a high rank-"

"And fame. And Money. Join the dark side, Luke," interrupted Holocho. "D'you see what I'm getting at? You're like Dark Vadar!"

Fubuki spluttered. "What?"

"I'm gonna have to say no to that extreeemely tempting offer, Vadar," Holocho said sarcastically.

Fubuki narrowed her eyes in anger. "Eyelashes! Wild Monkey!"

"Yes ma'am!"

"Hurt him so badly he won't be able to play hero ever again!" she shouted, pointing at Holocho. She didn't seem to care that Genos was there.

Her two cronies charged forward, yelling battlecries. But before they could blink, they were knocked flying, out of the apartment block and into some nearby trees.

"Seriously?" Holocho asked tiredly. "You send your minions to fight me? With Genos here as well?"

Fubuki looked nervously at the silent cyborg.

"I did not lay a finger on them." Genos said coldly. His arms were tightly crossed. "I am not needed here." And with that statement, he promptly turned and strode back into the apartment, closing the door behind him.

Fubuki seemed to relax with Genos gone from the scene. She raised her arms, making her white jacket fall off her shoulders. She started glowing, an icy blue hue forming around her body. Her hair started to float, buoyed by her mystic powers.

"What is this?" Holocho asked. "Oh right - you're an esper."

"Precisely. You don't seem very surprised," Fubuki replied, smiling slightly as she raised her arms to gather even more power.

"What are you gonna do? Force choke me? Blow me away with the power of the force?" Holocho said sarcastically. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Come on."

"I can tell you're mocking me." Fubuki said, smiling coldly. "But I'll make you regret it! I'll kill you so badly you'll wish you were dead."

"Wha-?"

"Hellstorm!"

Fubuki thrust her arms down at Holocho. The power she gathered was all unleashed at once, like a dam breaking, blowing gale - force winds at the boy. Numerous sharp stones and debris was carried by the wind, pummelling Holocho with furious force.

"This is a cruel attack. It rends flesh from bone and grinds the body with unrelenting force. He brought this upon himself trying to provoke me. How dare he-"

Suddenly, a loud crack resonated through the air. A lightning fast shockwave raced from within the turmoil, impacting one of Fubuki's outstretched hands. With a cry of pain, she released her hold on the winds and clutched at her injured hand, wincing. She looked up to see an unscathed Holocho standing with a bored expression on his face.

"That was a weak wave punch. And it crippled your fighting ability."

Fubuki grit her teeth in anger. "You-!"

In an instant, Holocho was at her side. Time seemed to stand still as he spoke. "You don't understand what it is to be a hero. Every day, deadly monsters appear that the public can't fight. A hero's job is to defeat those monsters, big or small, so that the people remain safe. Even if they are alone. You gather underlings that are weaker than you so you can feel strong, but it just shows that you are insecure. You'll cry about it someday. Factions? Crushing newbies? Securing power? Those are the actions of a politician. And that is below us. You aren't a proper hero, jerkface!"

"Shut your mouth! What can you possibly know about me?!"

A sharp crack rang out and everything went black for Fubuki.

"Phew, she was about to destroy the apartment!" Holocho said in relief, looking at the cracks forming on the floor. "Good thing I knocked her out."

The gravity of his actions sank in.

"Oh crap, I knocked her out."

He turned and opened the door to the apartment.

"We've got a guest staying over tonight!"

* * *

A/N: Things are getting a little troublesome now that Fubuki's staying over. What will she think of Saitama's tiny apartment? What will Saitama think about having an extra (unwanted) guest staying the night? I hope you guys enjoyed reading so far. Thanks for the follows, faves and reviews.

Credit for monster ideas: thank you rmarcano321 for letting me use your monsters in this fanfiction. (Sorry for not saying this earlier)

* * *

Review:

rmarcano321:

As a monster, Holocho would probably look like himself but much taller, buffer and probably slightly grey, like how Gouketsu looks like but less tall.

Holocho will definitely be involved with fighting some seafolk in the DSK arc.


	12. A Hurricane and a Shadow

A/N: Sorry for the wait, last week has been very hectic for me, leaving pretty much no time to write at all. We're pretty much back to our normal weekly uploads now. Enjoy!

* * *

A dull, incessant pain pounded Fubuki's head, as if someone was repeatedly bashing her head with a hammer. On the same spot. She tossed and turned on her bed, trying to find a comfortable position to lie in order to wait the pain out. However, the bed sheets felt odd. They were coarse, more stiff and rough than she expected. "Hold on…" she thought as her memories slowly came back to her. She could remember attacking that boy who refused to join her group. She had been preparing to launch her most powerful attack, but the boy had knocked her out! With a single blow!

A lightning fast chain of thoughts raced through her head. If she was knocked out, she would be helpless and wouldn't be able to move. Her being in a bed means she was moved by someone. As this bed feels odd, she must be in another person's bed. Her eyes flew open and she sat up as if shocked by electricity, causing her to wince at the pain the sudden action had brought.

"Oh! You're finally awake!" a young voice said at her side. It was muffled as if they were eating while talking. Fubuki turned to look at the source of the sound. Sure enough, the boy from earlier was perched on a swivel chair while eating a bowl of soup. He was looking curiously at Fubuki.

"How're you feeling?" he asked casually. "You took a pretty hard knock last night."

"Last night?" Fubuki frowned, looking towards the window. The sun was rising, orange rays of light peeking through the clouds. "I was out for that long?"

"Yeah… Saitama had you brought in. It looked like you actually woke up after a few minutes, but you seemed to go back to sleep immediately." Holocho explained.

"Oh… Hold on, where's Eyelashes and Wild Monkey?" Fubuki asked urgently.

"What, you're not gonna get angry at me for knocking you out? Or for not being woken up?" Holocho replied, confused.

"Be quiet and tell me where they are!" Fubuki exclaimed.

"All right, all right, calm yourself," Holocho said holding his hands up placatingly. He glanced at Saitama as he walked in, bearing a steaming bowl of rice and a bowl of miso soup. "You know where her guys went? I don't."

Saitama shrugged. "I think they made their own ways back. They weren't there when I went to take the rubbish out."

Fubuki sighed. They probably assumed she went home. She turned her attention on Holocho, anger beginning to seep into her face as she remembered why she was here in the first place. "Why did you knock me out? That was unnecessary and a stupid move! You do realise who you knocked out, right?"

Holocho huffed. "You were about to destroy our flat, okay? If I'd let you do whatever crazy psychic thing you were just about to pull off, we'd be in the streets! You're lucky I didn't punch you into a tree!"

Fubuki stood, crossing her arms as she looked down at Holocho. "I don't care about your apartment. You're heroes! Just get another one!" She jabbed a finger at the boy. "What matters is that you knocked me out!"

Holocho rolled his eyes. "Why d'you gotta be so angry? It can't be the pain, right? I barely tapped you."

Fubuki snorted in scorn. "You 'barely tapped' me? Then what do you call this?"

She pointed at a large red bump on her forehead.

Laughing slightly, Holocho said, "You're pretty fragile for the top B class hero."

This angered Fubuki even more. "And you're a rude little brat that doesn't deserve their position, let alone their role as a hero!"

Holocho was standing by now, compensating for Fubuki's height by standing on the chair. Saitama was sitting by the table, eating his breakfast without a care in the world, unaffected by the spat.

But before Fubuki and Holocho could enter a full-blown argument, Genos, wearing a pink apron, came out of the kitchen with an intense expression on his face.

"Master Saitama has kindly let you stay in his apartment, Fubuki. Please be thankful. Also, I have made some soup for you."

He held out a bowl of miso soup.

The presence of the S class hero and his words silenced Fubuki. She frowned. "Why…?"

"You are a guest here. Since I am being polite, I have offered you a portion of the breakfast soup I made. Here, take it."

"Thank you... " she said. Fubuki took the soup and placed it on the table. She sat down beside it, opposite Saitama.

"Flying Baldy?" she asked as they ate.

"Huh?"

"Why did you have me stay at your flat instead of waking me up and sending me away?"

"It's cold outside, I guess. Also, call me Saitama." he replied, mouth full. "I don't like the name 'Flying Baldy'."

"Okay…"

They ate on in silence. Genos joined them, eating the same soup he had made.

The psychic's mind was in a whirl. She didn't like that boy's attitude, but then again, his actions were justified - if he hadn't stopped her attack, their apartment would be in ruins and she would be liable for destroying an S class hero's home. His words from yesterday night were resonating in her mind, sparking doubts about her beliefs about being a hero as she was already feeling insecure about her decision about gathering a group - her sister has already berated her enough about that. But the real enigma to her was Saitama - why did he give up the best bed in his already cramped flat? And, why does he seem so indifferent to everything? Also, the soup tasted great. How had the S class hero made such a good soup?

Soon after she had finished, Fubuki stood to leave. "Thank you for letting me stay the night, Saitama."

Saitama didn't look up from his book. "Okay."

Fubuki walked away, out of the apartment, unsure what to make of his lacklustre response. As she travelled down in the streets below, she saw a black flicker whip past her in the corner of her eye, but she disregarded that for a trick her mind was playing on her. After all, she had been knocked out. Anyhow, she was too preoccupied with trying to figure out the odd trio to care.

* * *

"Baldy, what d'you think of that Fubuki person?" Holocho asked, finally able to speak freely.

This caused Saitama to look up at Holocho with a frown. "She doesn't seem too bad, shorty."

"But she called me a 'rude little brat'," Holocho replied. "I think she's a bit of a hothead."

Saitama snorted slightly. "You did knock her out."

"But if I didn't, our apartment would be rubble!" Holocho retorted.

Saitama nodded his head. "Good thing you did, huh?"

"I have heard that her big sister is even worse." Genos added. "Terrible Tornado is known for her temper." He projected a hologram of Tatsumaki and her statistics from one of his eyes for the other two heroes to see.

"S class rank 2… Wow! She must be powerful!" Holocho exclaimed, reading her stats.

"She looks like a child though," Saitama commented. "How old is she? 12?"

"Actually, she is 28 years old, master."

"Are you serious?" Saitama said disbelievingly. "She's 28?"

"Yeah, she is," Holocho confirmed. "It says so right here."

He pointed at the stat box containing her age.

"She looks like a pre-teen!" Saitama said. "A sassy one, judging from her pose."

"Yo, Genos, so you're saying that this tiny person is more powerful than you?" Holocho asked.

"That is true," he responded. "Her psychic power makes her immensely strong. She is S class rank 2 for a reason."

But before they could continue their conversation, Genos's internal radar bleeped. He turned off his hologram.

"Single small object approaching at high speed. ETA: 3 seconds."

Holocho disappeared. A gust of wind blew through the apartment.

"Where did he go?" Genos asked, casting around.

"Didn't you see? Through the door." Saitama said casually. "He wasn't that fast, Genos."

Genos's eyes widened at the implications of Saitama's words.

* * *

Holocho stood outside the apartment door, waiting patiently. He had a good idea who it was - that ninja guy from last time that he accidentally nailed in the nuts. He assumed that he would come around to visit in the near future. "Oi! Porcupine! Come out!"

Speed-o'-Sound Sonic dropped down, landing in a crouch, confirming Holocho's guess. "What do you mean, 'Porcupine'?"

Holocho groaned. "Sonic the Porcupine? You don't know who he is? Ya know? That blue guy?"

Sonic stared at him blankly. From inside, Saitama snorted, overhearing the conversation.

"Come on! Did you even have a childhood?" Holocho asked.

"I'm not here to talk about my childhood!" Sonic snarled. "I am here to defeat you, my bitter rival!"

"Fine, whatever," Holocho responded. He jumped down to the street below. "Come on!"

Genos looked at Saitama who was continuing to read his manga. "You're not going to watch them fight, master?"

Saitama didn't look up as he replied. "I want to finish this book before tomorrow, the next volume's coming out then. Also, we're going monster hunting after this and I can't be bothered to put on my costume right now just to watch a little fight."

Genos tilted his head. "Alright, master. If it's fine by you, I wish to go and watch the fight."

"Sure, do what you want."

On the street below, Sonic was crouched in a fighting stance, katana raised. He was regarding Holocho warily, observing his every move.

"Are you gonna attack or what?" Holocho asked impatiently. He was standing with his arms crossed. He was getting irritated of the ninja's hesitance.

"He's so full openings, as if he's baiting me to attack!" Sonic thought, his mind working furiously. "He truly is a wily foe, but I will not fall into his trap! I must be careful or he will decimate me again!"

Holocho grumbled. "Fine, I'll attack."

He ran forward halfheartedly, going in for a sloppy punch. Sonic's eyes widened as he frantically dodged around the blow like a gymnast. He cartwheeled away while sheathing his katana, landing in another crouch, but was forced to leap up to the side to avoid a speeding shockwave from Holocho's wave punch. He flipped himself mid-air, orientating himself to land on the apartment wall and launch himself away from another wave punch that blew open a hole in the concrete.

"Never again will I suffer from that stupid shockwave!" Sonic thought as he nimbly dodged Holocho's lazy attacks.

"Hey! Are all you're gonna do is dodge?" Holocho shouted impatiently, firing off another series of lethargic wave punches.

Sonic laughed tauntingly as he danced around each shockwave. "You're too slow to hit me anymore, child!"

Holocho huffed. Then paused to think as a new idea came to mind. "Breathing…"

Speed-o'-Sound Sonic saw the boy's brief break in attacks. "Are you tired, child?"

He laughed yet again. "Time to finish this!"

The ninja unsheathed his katana and launched himself at Holocho with all his strength, becoming a black and purple blur. His face morphed into a predatory grin as he prepared to unleash his most powerful attack.

"Ultimate Tech-"

"HA!" Holocho shouted, emptying his lungs of air in an instant, his exhale pushing a large volume of air at the flying ninja. The air hit Sonic like a wall, crashing him through an apartment wall. All the ninja could do was groan, his whole body bruised blue as if he was run over by a steamroller. Or a yellow road roller. His katana shattered into pieces, sharp shards scattered around the dusty room. Sonic lay sprawled on the floor in a heap, a skinny, tangled pile of a human.

Holocho peered into the hole Sonic had made in the wall. "You okay in there?" he asked innocently.

In a flash, Sonic was up. His bruised face contorted into anger as he yelled at Holocho. "You dare taunt me?!"

"I didn't taunt you!"

"Don't pretend you're not! This was all an elaborate scheme to make fun of me! Your sloppy but fast punches, your shout attack! You're trying to humiliate me!"

"No-"

"I'll be back! And I, Speed-o'-Sound Sonic, will make you regret your actions! The next time we meet, child, you will be grovelling at my feet, begging for mercy!"

He accentuated his words with an aggressive jab at Holocho's chest.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you improve," Holocho said earnestly.

"Don't make fun of me!" Sonic shouted. He jumped into the street and raised his fist toward Holocho. "I will be your demise! Just wait!"

He ran off into the distance, limping.

"Alright…"

Genos landed next to Holocho, looking at Sonic's fading form. "What did you do to him?"

Holocho shrugged. "I don't know. I just tried to punch him a bit, then I shouted him into a wall. Now he's real angry for some reason."

Genos processed his thoughts. "Based on my analysis, you were barely trying to defeat him despite him saying that he is your rival. Why is that?"

Holocho sighed. "I guess I felt bad about punching him in the peanuts last time. He seems like a nice enough guy, apart from his obsessive rivalry. That shout attack I made up though, what d'you think of it?"

The cyborg frowned in thought. "It seems like an effective way to combat fast flying enemies due to its wide spread. However, it does have a short range, making it hard to perform to its best extent due to the speed of some enemies."

"No, you silly computer brain, I meant what you thought of the attack itself, not the combat effectiveness! I know about that already!" Holocho said, teasing the cyborg.

"Oh." Genos said, realising what was asked of him. "I think it's a… clever attack. I… approve of it."

He seemed to hesitate as if unsure what to say.

"Thanks!" Holocho said, smiling at the praise he received. Inwardly, he laughed at Genos's clunky attempts to praise his attack, but he was proud of Genos for even managing to say that. He was starting to act like a human.

* * *

Review:

Rmarcano321:

Thank you for your consistent reviews.

Fubuki appears early as Saitama and Holocho become B class much earlier than in canon. She does indeed appear to be her own worst enemy - she surrounds herself with numbers to compensate for a lack of power, this suggests how she (internally) feels inadequate with her power, probably because of Tats being so much more powerful than her.

I forgot to credit you for your monsters at first, I'm sorry for that, but I added in credit, don't worry.

Holocho is named 'Brutal Tempest' after his characteristics as explained in the previous chapter. I agree that it does sound like the psychic sisters, but I do have my reasons for naming him that way.


	13. Temptation

Speed-o'-Sound Sonic stood completely still. He breathed slowly and steadily, drawing and exhaling long breaths. He stood in the clearing of a forest, but his mind soon transported him into another realm. Before him, amongst the pitch black surroundings, wisps of air coiled and writhed together to form a short and featureless figure. It put its hands on its hips, laughing mockingly at Sonic despite being silent.

Holocho.

The ninja sprang into action, lunging forward and thrusting his katana at the boy, but he disappeared from view, flashing into view behind Sonic. Whirling around, he sliced at him while throwing multiple razor-sharp kunai, but all he hit was empty air as the boy dodged and weaved around the blades. Ducking under the katana, Holocho's form struck Sonic in the gut, sending him flying into a tree, spit flying out from his mouth. He was given no time to recover as multiple shockwaves flew at Sonic, each going well above the speed of sound. The ninja frantically raised his katana to block the incoming attacks, but the shockwaves were too strong, shattering the katana into many pieces.

Sonic briefly gasped in surprise, staring at the hilt of his katana before casting it away just in time to see Holocho's flying figure rocketing towards him, foot extended for a flying side kick. Sonic guided the boy's foot above his head before grabbing onto his leg. Using the boy's momentum, he swung the lighter boy into the same tree he was hit onto causing a shower of leaves to cascade down. Sonic's gaze temporarily turned to the leaves. When his eyes darted back towards where he slammed Holocho, the boy wasn't there, Sonic's eyes widened as he ducked, just in time to dodge a punch from Holocho, standing behind him.

He smirked. He leapt up, running up the tree. Shockwaves crashed into the tree, trailing Sonic's position. Grabbing a branch, he swung himself around, gathering momentum, before sending himself flying at Holocho, his legs extended for a kick. Holocho effortlessly dodged to the side, but Sonic reappeared in behind the boy, hitting him in the head with a roundhouse kick. Holocho was stunned for a split second, but long enough for Sonic to prepare his new technique. His body seemed to flicker as four separate Sonics emerged from his one body. They moved in unison, advancing towards the now standing boy. The Sonics lunged forward in a random pattern, bombarding Holocho with a rain of unpredictable attacks that he couldn't hope to defend effectively against. They moved around him, hitting the boy from all angles with a combination of punches and kicks aimed at his weak points - joints, exposed parts.

But that still wasn't enough.

Slowly rising despite the constant attacks, Holocho rose shakily, planting his feet wide apart for stability. Try as he might, Sonic just couldn't knock him over or disable him. Holocho drew in a deep breath and shouted silently, expelling air from his lungs in an instant in a wide arc. Sonic was partially caught by the attack as he tried to move to the side, sending him tumbling onto the ground. Holocho didn't hesitate, taking advantage of the situation and unleashing a powerful punch at the fallen ninja, but all that hit Sonic was a gust of air as his mind transported him back into the real world. He knew that if the real attack had landed, he would be out for good.

The ninja lay sprawled on the floor in the clearing, fist clenched in frustration. The evidence of a battle surrounded him - splintered trees, thrown-up grass and mud and bare, leafless trees (the leaves being blown away by the force of his blows.)

Sonic didn't care for this, slamming his fist on the ground in anger.

"Why am I so weak?" he berated himself in his mind, fury evident on his face. "It's as if all my training is leading nowhere!"

He stood, dusting himself down, composing himself.

"I must control my emotions. They lead to me making rash decisions."

His years of training had taught him so.

Seeing his katana, he grabbed it off the floor and sheathed it. He looked over the wreckage he had caused. Nothing that just happened was real, but a creation of his mind. A training technique taught in his childhood home, the ninja village - shadow training - to allow the mind to create a shadow based his most feared enemy which would then attack him. This technique would not cause any physical harm, being a creation of the mind, but the user would still feel the simulated pain from any hits sustained. However, his surroundings would still be destroyed by the force of his blows if he wasn't careful.

Sonic had been using this technique to train for days on end and he felt that he was improving exponentially. His speed, agility and strength have all shot up - he had been lasting longer and longer against his conjured-up vision of Holocho. But the first days had been a nightmare - the vision his mind made him face was the exact replica of the Holocho he had faced a few days before: his techniques, attack pattern, speed and strength were all mirrored. He had been pummeled by Holocho back then, so it was no different each time they faced off in his head. This was why this training technique was so dangerous: many ninjas he knew had been driven crazy by the constant pain they were exposed to while doing shadow-training. The stronger their most feared opponent was, the harsher the training. But Speed-o'-Sound Sonic was prepared to do whatever it took to overcome the boy.

However, Holocho was still far too strong. It infuriated him to no end that a mere child could be so much stronger than him. It made it even worse that the child was so proficient in humiliating him: each of the two battles he has fought with him has ended in some sort of demeaning yet paralyzing attack: an attack to his most vulnerable parts or simply a shout that knocked him through a wall. It was like he was rubbing salt in his open wound, making a mockery of his sacred, finely-honed techniques few could live to witness and fewer could have the honour of learning.

"How the hell did that child get so powerful?" he thought. "I've been training for longer than he has been alive, but he defeated me… like a rhino against a little house cat."

He sat down, cross-legged as he pondered the source of Holocho's strength.

"Perhaps he was born into power? Won the genetic lottery? No, that can't be it. It would be a one in several billion chance for that to occur. But maybe…"

So buried in thought Sonic was, he didn't notice the heavy footsteps of an approaching man.

"Hello, Speed-"

Sonic whirled around and punched wildly at the source of the voice, sending a black-haired man in a white lab coat flying. The intruder landed ungracefully on the floor a few metres away.

"That isn't a good way to greet strangers, Speed-o'-Sound Sonic," the man said, climbing up from the ground. He was smiling a strange smile, completely disregarding his clearly broken arm that hung limp by his side.

Sonic stepped back warily, unsheathing his katana, pointing it at the newcomer. This man had caught him off-guard. He must be a dangerous foe. "Who are you? How did you find me? And why are you feeling no pain?" he said rapidly, betraying his nerves.

He couldn't let his guard down. This stranger was definitely inhuman, judging by his lack of pain and the eerie smile on his face.

"Why, I am Genus-1092, a clone of the great Dr. Genus of the House of Evolution," he said, gesturing at himself with his undamaged hand. A pair of simple black glasses adorned his face, sunlight reflecting off them. A mop of messy, uncared-for hair sat on his head. He was wearing a generic lab coat decorated simply by a pin with his name on.

With the same disconcerting smile, he carried on talking. "Finding you was a simple matter. Our scouts simply followed your tracks. All I needed then needed to do was follow my scouts."

"Impossible. I left no tracks. They were perfectly covered."

Sonic's katana remained pointed unwaveringly at Genus.

The man laughed. "They may not be visible to the ordinary human, but to our scouts they stood out like a chimpanzee in a classroom."

"You must be lying. I detect no scouts." Sonic said, narrowing his eyes. "You're using satellite tracking."

Genus smiled once again. "Are you sure? There's a scout, crawling right up your arm."

Sonic's eyes widened. Sure enough, he could see a fly crawling up his arm. He quickly flicked it off and sliced it in half with his katana. Sparks could be seen dancing amongst the now exposed circuitry in the halved 'fly'.

"Our scouts are mechanised versions of insects," Genus boasted proudly, seeing the shocked expression on Sonic's face. "They can analyse every small difference caused by any disturbance, from any angle. The ultimate spy."

The ninja composed himself, pointing his katana back at Genus. He was now even more on edge. This man clearly had access to state-of-the art technology. If anything, he could be hiding a weapon in those baggy sleeves of his. Maybe there was a swarm of mechanised horrors waiting to attack him. He knew he must get away from Genus, but his curiosity was yet to be sated. He would stay until he heard all he wanted to hear.

"I don't care. You still haven't answered my third question," he said tersely.

The man simply smiled his strange smile. "I will tell you, Speed-o'-Sound Sonic, but first let me explain why I am here."

"Tell me now."

"Now now, don't be so impatient. The reason I'm here is to give you an offer." Genus said. His eyes took on what seemed like a strange glint from what Sonic could tell. "From our recent surveillance, you've been beaten once again by that child, correct?"

"What has that got to do with anything?" Sonic shot back, poker-faced. But inside, he was reeling from shock. How far back did their surveillance go? How did they know that he had already fought with Holocho before?

"This shows that you are weak."

Sonic's face contorted in anger. "You have ten seconds before your head is removed from your body."

How dare he!

For the first time, Genus's face showed something apart from that strange smile. Instead, his face turned serious. He leaned forward, as if sharing a secret.

"You wonder how I feel no pain. The truth is, I am a genetically altered human. My pain receptors have been removed. But where I come from, the House of Evolution, offers much more than simple pain removal. We can turn humans into God-like beings - unkillable, all powerful, forever young."

Sonic frowned. "I don't believe you."

Genus gestured with his arms, spreading them wide. "Why?" he said, grinning arrogantly, showing off a set of perfect white teeth.

Sonic stepped backwards in shock. "Your arm… Was broken! I felt it shatter myself!"

"But now it is not. And this is just the most basic of our capabilities, accelerated healing. Come with me and we will turn you into a God."

The ninja's katana wavered in his grasp. He was tempted by the offer. Truly tempted. After being humiliated by a child twice in a row, he felt on the verge of going mad - everything he did meant nothing, no matter how hard the training he underwent. Holocho was an impassable mountain to him; however powerful Sonic became, he was certain that Holocho would remain leagues above him in everything that he prided himself on - his speed that surpasses sound he had worked so hard on throughout his childhood, his supreme agility that far outstripped almost all ninjas, nothing mattered when it came to facing Holocho. It was like a mortal trying to surpass God. But now, he was being offered the chance of becoming a God. But he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about Genus.

"I can't trust you."

Surprisingly, the scientist sighed, crestfallen. "Too bad. I'll have to find another candidate."

He turned his back on Sonic, walking away.

The ninja's thoughts were in turmoil as he stared at Genus's retreating form. He desperately wanted to gain strength. Even if he couldn't become a 'God', the regeneration shown would greatly aid him in his training. He would be able to train indefinitely, without worry for injury. He would finally be able to surpass Holocho. But his instincts screamed danger, the danger he would be in if he accepted the man's offer, and he always, no matter what, trusted his gut feeling. They have never failed him before, they even have saved him from death.

But despite his doubts, his temptation started to overpower his caution. Think about it, a side of him said. All that power, within your grasp! All you need to do is say a word, and it will be yours! He could feel his willpower crumbling. So what about danger? Once I obtain the power, nothing will be able to stop me!

The voice in the back of his head, the voice of instinct that once screamed warnings, fell silent.

Not too far away, Genus detected movement. The ninja was darting towards him, an apprehensive expression written on his face. But it was clear to him that the ninja would not be turning back.

He grinned. His plan had worked perfectly.

* * *

A/N: I spent ages editing this chapter, mostly because I was never satisfied with it. I still am not quite satisfied. But with the time I have, it will have to do! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, it's a change of tone from the usual, something I'm trying out. Please let me know how I did, thank you.

* * *

Reviews:

F-ckthesystem125:

Thank you for your kind words. This fanfic will definitely continue.

I haven't decided on pairings just yet, I'm still quite a new writer, but I'll take what you said into consideration, thanks.

Interesting username btw.

rmarano321:

Fubuki was pretty angry, also in canon she didn't seem to care about unleashing her most 'cruel' attack on a lowly B class. I don't think she really thinks about collateral damage when she's in a rage.

Sonic requires a lot of training.

He appears here as it's similar to the timings of canon - about a week, give or take.

Holocho was just trying out a new attack, don't mind him...

I won't say anything about Holocho's fights due to spoilers, etc. Thanks for the review however.


	14. Descending Doom

"Master. Our kombu is starting to run out," Genos said,

"Oh?" Saitama replied, walking over to the kitchen. Sure enough, their previously massive stash of fresh kombu had diminished to a few leaves.

"It's too bad there aren't any other food monsters nearby," he said, sighing.

They had obtained an ungodly amount of fresh kombu just a week ago, from a little monster roaming around the streets near their apartment. The trio had bumped into it after a weekly grocery trip, and for them it was a stroke of luck as they had forgotten to buy kombu soup stock. After it had revealed to them that it had an infinite amount of kombu, Holocho had toyed around with it, trying to draw out as much kombu as possible, per Saitama's request.

He got to try out a new attack - 'air tickle' - a relatively gentle attack where he simple prodded the air with his pinky, sending tiny little shockwaves at the enemy. His attack looked ridiculous of course, but it was too much for the kombu monster, killing it fairly quickly. The trio had then carried home mountains of kombu, Saitama smiling all the way.

Genos somehow had enough recipes stored in his brain to make sure that they didn't get sick of eating kombu so much, something that both Saitama and Holocho were very grateful for, but now all that was left of it was a few leaves, probably the result of the three heroes eating kombu dishes for three meals every day.

What Saitama and Holocho were even more happy about was the amount of fan mail that was being sent to them. After being heroes for around two weeks, they had defeated monster after monster in Z-City, coincidentally saving the lives of many citizens around them. Of course, said saved citizens were grateful for their actions, even if the vast majority of monsters they had defeated were just wolf level threats, some even just human criminals up to no good. So, much to Saitama's pleasure, he had been sent a sizeable amount of letters from various fans and people he had saved. He received nowhere as near as much as Genos received for obvious reasons, but it made the caped baldy more cheerful that his actions were finally being recognised, he hadn't been mistaken for a terrorist for almost 10 days straight now!

More importantly, along with the mail that had been flown in via drone, came three mobiles phones provided by the Hero Association. They had finally saw fit to give them direct lines of access to them in case there were any higher level threats in Z-City, there weren't many heroes available in the city apart from them. Holocho and Saitama had been called out a few times to deal with tiger level threats, which they dispatched of easily enough, but Genos's phone had remained inactive, the association probably thought that they shouldn't unnecessarily disturb an S-class hero. Terrible Tornado had told them (rather rudely) that they shouldn't be bugged all the time to fight 'weaklings', But that didn't stop Genos from coming along, out of his desire to watch and learn from his master.

Today, they were having a small rest from monster hunting. They seemed to be diminishing in number after being targeted so vigorously by the heroes for the past weeks. This didn't mean that the competition between Holocho and Saitama had stopped in any way, they had just agreed to stop for a single day to rest. Constantly straining their eyes and ears for monsters did become quite tiring after a while.

Saitama and Holocho were engrossed in a random fighting video game they recently bought. Genos was watching Saitama closely as he played, observing his finger movements and his posture, scribbling down reams of notes in his notepad.

"Player 2! Win!" the announcer said. On the TV screen, a burly man stood victorious over the prone body of an even burlier fighter.

"Haha! I beat you again!" Holocho crowed, punching the air (gently as to not poke a hole in the roof).

Saitama groaned, slamming the floor with his fist, leaving a dent in the floor. " That was just luck!"

"Sure it was, egg-head! You're just bad!" Holocho replied, smiling arrogantly.

"No I'm not!" Saitama said. "You just chose the best character!"

Holocho snorted. "Yeah, but look at my health! It's barely at half!"

Huffing, Saitama said determinedly, "Let me choose him next match, I'll trash you!"

"Yeah right."

The pair were deep into their next match, staring intensely at the screen. Saitama had Holocho's previous character while Holocho had picked a smaller, more agile fighter. As they fought, Genos's phone rang, distracting Holocho. His brief look away from the screen let Saitama land the finishing blow on Holocho's defenceless fighter.

"Hey!" Holocho cried indignantly. "Foul play!"

"That wasn't foul play, I won fairly!" came Saitama's heated reply.

"No-" Holocho started.

"How big is the meteor?" Genos asked the operator, causing them both to stop and listen. "Understood."

The cyborg stood, a dark look in his eyes. "An extremely large meteor is going to crash into Z-City. Master, Holocho, we must head out to destroy it at once."

Holocho's inquisitive eyes became serious. "Let's go."

Saitama merely shrugged.

* * *

The trio stood on the tallest building in town, gazing at the burning meteor streaking down towards them. The brown rock of the meteor burned brighter and brighter as it descended into progressively thicker atmosphere.

"68 seconds until collision," Genos stated. His amber eyes locking on to the giant rock. He was sporting a new set of arms as a result of an upgrade - a black, shiny pair, more sleek and angular that his previous arms. Black metal spikes were formed flush with the sides of his cheeks, giving him a more menacing look.

"Okay," Saitama said simply. "Let's get this over with."

A rush of wind buffeted the heroes from behind, prompting them to turn to see a gunmetal grey figure streaking across the sky, landing on a lower building nearby.

"Who's he?" Saitama asked, slightly irritated at the interruption.

"That's Metal Knight, master," Genos said, scanning the newcomer with his eyes.

"What's he doing here? Does he also live here?" Holocho wondered. He strained his ears to hear faint, robotic words being spoken. "Why's he talking to himself?"

His eyes widened as he realised what Metal Knight had said. "He said, 'locking on'! I think that means-"

A series of large missiles shot out from their holding places on Metal Knight's back, rocketing towards the giant meteor. They curved in the sky, spiralling as they flew at tremendous speeds. As soon as they reached the meteor, they impacted in several different places, causing a bright and violent explosion that rocked the city, bathing it in yellow and orange light from the fireball produced by the high yield explosives. Genos gasped and braced himself against the shockwave produced from the massive explosion. Holocho and Saitama stood unimpressed.

"Incredible," Genos thought with wide eyes, looking at the large metal figure below. "Such destructive power. He is truly a powerful yet dangerous hero. I must be wary."

"Look, it failed," Holocho said, pointing at the massive shadow behind the clouds of smoke produced from the explosions. Sure enough, the burning meteor reared its ugly face, bursting through the clouds of smoke around it, dissipating them.

Metal Knight looked away from the meteor dismissively and blasted into the air, flying away from the seemingly undamaged meteor.

"Is he just gonna leave like that? Doesn't he care about our city?" Holocho asked, watching Metal Knight's escape, disgusted.

"It is likely that he came merely to field test his new weapons," an older voice said behind them.

"Who are you?" Holocho asked, turning around to face an old man. His tanned face was creased with age. He was sporting a simple black top accompanied by white trousers. His sunken, grey-blue eyes stared at them intensely.

"My name is Bang. Nice to meet you all."

"Are you here to stop the meteor?" Saitama inquired slightly impatiently. That massive space rock was getting quite close, also, he was missing out on valuable gaming time.

"Unfortunately, I am not, as it isn't within my ability to do so," Bang replied. "All S-Class heroes were called, but it seems like only we turned up. I saw you gathered here and have come to advise you all to evacuate. There's nothing we can do to stop the meteor from impacting and destroying the whole city."

"I'm going to destroy it," Saitama said simply.

"What?"

With a ground-shattering explosion and shockwave, Saitama leapt up at the meteor at an awe-inspiring speed. His body cut through the air, aimed perfectly at the giant meteor.

"Master?" Genos asked, eyes wide at the sight of his master throwing himself into the meteor.

"What's he doing? Is he mad?" Bang exclaimed. "Who even is he?"

"He'll be fine," Holocho said casually. "You just don't realise how powerful he is. Look at his speed!"

But he was unconvinced. Bang sighed and resigned himself to see yet another hero push themselves too far and die from the result of it.

The air whistled past Saitama's body as he headed towards the meteor. He could feel the air getting hotter and hotter as he approached the burning rock. It was evident that, due to the size of this rock, it would certainly destroy his apartment if it landed. Being a B class hero with barely enough income to live in his little apartment, he wouldn't be able to afford a new home if his current flat was vaporised. Also, his new favourite thing - video games - was in there. He couldn't let them be destroyed. Sizing up the meteor in front of him, Saitama drew his fist back. "You're not gonna fall…"

The meteor seemed to dwarf the hero as he approached it, but the size didn't deter him.

"On my town!"

Saitama reached up and struck the meteor, the sheer force of his punch and his momentum burrowing him straight through the centre of the colossal meteor. Blue cracks appeared across the crumbling meteor as he ploughed through it like a hot knife through butter. As soon as Saitama burst through the meteor's top, it finally broke apart in a breath-taking explosion. The sky burned dark blue as glowing azure rings from the explosion spread across it, darkening the world around them dramatically as they all beheld the spectacle above them. Deep in space, alien eyes widened as they observed a bright blue flash light up a part of the planet they were watching.

"Unbelievable! He shattered it!" Bang exclaimed.

"With one punch!" Holocho added. He couldn't comprehend the ocean of strength Saitama seemed to have. He may as well be a fly to a God.

"But…" Bang said, trailing off.

"The debris!" Holocho said in alarm. "It's gonna destroy the city anyways!"

Planting his feet wide apart in a stable stance, he inhaled deeply and shouted:

"Double Wave Punch Barrage!"

Both his fists blurred into action, striking the air like he was trying to defeat hordes of mosquitoes. The sound of continuous crackling filled the air, the results of the flurry of thin yet precise and forceful shockwaves flying towards the meteor's debris in an attempt to destroy it all before it reached the ground.

However, it still wasn't enough. Large rocks were still making it past his storm, threatening to crash into the vulnerable city below. But before they could, lances of orange fire reached out and disintegrated them with pure heat. Genos had powered up and was blasting all debris that made it past Holocho's rain of blows.

"That boy's power…" Bang said in awe, gazing at the blurry form of Holocho as he decimated the seemingly unending storm of debris.

* * *

Saitama landed in a nearby street, his cape billowing out behind him. He stood up.

"Guess that settles that."

He turned towards the strange mixture of cracking and roars of flame to see translucent beams of air and fire shooting up at the falling debris, barely preventing it from destroying the city.

"Oh. I forgot about that."

* * *

A couple of minutes later, a tired and irritated Holocho jumped down before Saitama, closely followed by Genos. Bang dropped down moments later, curious as to what they were going to do.

"Hey! Saitama! Why didn't you help us destroy the debris!" Holocho asked irritatedly. "Me and Genos worked our asses off to only just stop Z-City become a smoking wasteland!"

"Crap! They're all staring at me judgmentally! Even the S Class guy!" Saitama anxiously thought. Then an idea sprang to mind.

"I knew that you two would be able to handle it," he said, smiling confidently. "Had there been the need, I would have stepped in, but sometimes I need to allow a little pressure on you two to make you grow used to the stress of battle. Otherwise you'll not be able to handle any fight that pushes you beyond your comfort zone, and you will be crushed by a more calm and composed enemy that has not the weakness of a panicked mind."

Genos gasped and produced a pen and notepad out of what seemed like thin air. He frantically scribbled Saitama's words down, his hand a blur.

Holocho tilted his head as he considered what Saitama said. Then he shrugged and looked as if he accepted them.

Bang, on the other hand, was impressed. Saitama was not only powerful, his words were wise and well thought out, as if he had years of experience of being a sensei. He was truly blown away by his wisdom - he was an example that one does not need to be old to be wise.

Saitama internally sighed in relief. All he said was a bunch of lines from a bunch of old kung-fu films he had watched back when he was a kid, but luckily for him, those three hadn't seen them! He was saved!

"So, should we head back, then?" Holocho asked.

"Okay," Saitama replied.

"Genos, you done writing your notes?"

"Yes, I have." the cyborg replied. He stored his pen and notepad back into one of many compartments hidden around his body.

The trio turned and walked up the street back towards their apartment.

"I can't wait to trash you even more, baldy!" Holocho said playfully as they walked away.

"You won't, shorty, I've thought of a new playing style you won't be able to handle." Saitama shot back.

"What, consecutive light punches?"

"That's a valid strategy!"

Bang sighed as he watched them walk into the distance. If only he had such lively spirits like them in his dojo.

* * *

A/N: Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed. Thanks for your continued support as well, it means a lot to me. As for pairings, I don't know if I'd be able to write romance well, but if I feel it's right, I'll certainly give it a shot.

* * *

Reviews:

rmarcano321: I'm trying to make Holocho into his own character, so hopefully he's not a second-rate Saitama.

Armoured Gorilla was spared in canon, so I saw no reason to kill him off. Also he's a nice guy when not in crazy cyborg mode.

Clone Genus and Psykos working together? I ain't gonna spoil stuff already...

Monster Holocho is an interesting idea, I feel like he would be pretty powerful. However I don't know how much stronger each person gets when monsterfied, it may be different for each person, I have no idea, so I can't say for certain if a monsterfied Holocho could defeat Saitama.

rjconanan333: Thank you!


	15. Invasion from the Sea

The sea tossed and turned fitfully as if plagued by a nightmare. A dark shadow was growing as something big was forcing itself to the surface.

But this wasn't noticed by any of the three heroes walking by. They had been walking home from the supermarket after buying their weekly groceries. This time they had spent more money than usual, treating themselves to some finer foods in celebration of their long overdue promotion to Class A.

After completely and utterly destroying the giant meteor a few days ago, the Hero Association had been quick to promote them. This was largely due to the power Holocho and Saitama had shown but also due to a sizeable amount of public support. Citizens of Z City that were nearby had seen and even videoed the heroes' successful attempt to stop the meteor and were rightfully extremely impressed and thankful not only of Saitama's raw power but also of Holocho's finesse and skill, destroying the meteor and large amounts of debris that would have destroyed much of Z City even after the meteor was shattered. Videos of their feats had spread quickly across the internet, leading to a large amount of public support. Saitama had hated it at first, because of the swarms of reporters their promotions had brought with them, but once Genos had made it clear that they wouldn't answer any questions with his usual intimidating states, the reporters had backed off, fearful of the Class S hero's power. Now, Saitama and Holocho were beginning to enjoy the main benefit of being a Class A hero - a substantially increased salary! Now they were able to live comfortably and afford much more than the bare necessities. They could finally satisfy Holocho's seemingly unending appetite. And, most importantly, they could afford a much better video game console, which they had just gone out and bought. They were now looking forward to a night of video gaming, but sadly, their peaceful walk home was interrupted by a giant toga-clad octopus monster emerging from the sea.

Its giant octopus head writhed as it opened its vertical mouth to deliver its message.

"Unless you want to die, listen up!" It shouted with a deep, booming voice to the mass panic of the surrounding citizens. "We are messengers from the deep sea!"

The three heroes stopped a small distance away from the large monster and stared at it.

"Have you guys had octopus before?" Holocho asked unconcernedly as the monster was yelling something about food and seafolk.

"No," Saitama said. He then looked up at the giant octopus before him. "Maybe…"

Genos shouted, his body glowing orange.

"Hold on, Genos, what-?"

A column of intense fire shot out from Genos's palms, striking and engulfing the entire monster. Before it could scream, it was burned into a pile of ash and bone on the floor.

"Damnit, Genos," Holocho said, face palming.

"Sorry, master, I miscalculated." Genos said grimly, turning to face Saitama.

The caped baldy simply sighed. "Sometimes, power doesn't mean success, Genos."

He started to walk back home, closely followed by Holocho. "Weren't we having sushi today anyway? Genos?

He turned back to see Genos scribbling down notes in a battered notepad. His hand was a grey blur.

"Oh."

* * *

A black wall of water raced towards the coast of J City. Within the wave, giant sea creatures were rising to its crest. As it drew closer, the incoming wave of water grew exponentially in size, towering over tourists on the beach, threatening to engulf them as it loomed over the unfortunate sunbathers and surfers.

It collapsed on the beach with a tremendous crash, white foamy water heralding the arrival of several aquatic monstrous beings that rose menacingly. With a shriek, the tourists ran for safety, but not before one was snatched up by one of a large octopus-headed monster's tentacles.

"The Clan of the Sea Folk rules the earth now!" the monster bellowed, raising the captured human threateningly, ignoring his fruitless cries for help. "Those who defy us will die! The rest are cattle!"

However, the tentacle holding the human was sliced in half with a single blow, releasing the tourist who quickly made an escape.

Growling in anger, the monster snarled, "Now you've done it, human!"

A slim, athletic man holding a spear with a spear tip made of bamboo landed on a car nearby. He stood, twirling his spear dexterously before placing it under the armpit of his black-clad body.

"I'm a super-popular hero rated class A, rank 11!" he shouted, smiling confidently. "The name's Stinger! Nice to meet ya!"

Around him, the fleeing tourists stopped to cheer him on with evident relief.

"It's Stinger!"

"I knew he'd come!"

We're saved!"

The hero casually rested his spear on his shoulders. "Good thing you showed up while I was on patrol, I was bored!"

He dropped into a fighting stance, spear held in front of him. "Well now, who'd like a big air hole in their torso?!"

Roaring in anger, the sea monsters charged at the lone hero. Nimbly, he danced out of the way of multiple blows that barely missed him. Using the arm of a slower monster, he pivoted and jumped at the octopus-headed monster and thrust his spear into the monster's head, drilling in it a wide hole. With a roar, it collapsed on the ground, dead. The seafolk bellowed in at the loss of their comrade and threw themselves at the hero. Stinger was an agile and skilled fighter, but he was fighting 9 monsters at once. It was too much for him to dodge, resulting in him suffering several hits that felt like multiple trucks hitting him at the same time.

"Not bad…" he said, stumbling back into a fighting stance. He tried to recover his breath, but the monsters had done a toll on him despite only hitting him a few times. Around him, the monsters manoeuvred themselves into a circle around him, cutting off any escape routes.

"Submit! You are a strong foe, but you're no match for all 9 of us at once!" a crab-headed humanoid shouted. "You will be crushed! It is inevitable!"

A flicker of uncertainty flashed across Stinger's face, but only for a split second. His fans watching from further away shouted encouragement and support, but their words were lost amidst the growling and snarling of the 9 monsters surrounding the wounded hero.

However, a monster suddenly grunted in shock. Its head slowly slid off, the expression of shock frozen on it. As it collapsed onto the ground, the ring around Stinger quickly broke as the monsters turned to face the new threat.

"Reinforcements?" one monster growled. "More weaklings for us to crush?"

Stinger's face brightened for a split second before twisting into a frown. He was sure that someone was here to steal the credit of defeating this invasion. Fine, he was a little injured, but he could easily take them on! He didn't need another meddling hero swooping in and stealing his victory.

Just as he was about to leap into action, he was frozen by the sight of the monsters all simultaneously being decapitated by a swift strike across their necks. They toppled to the ground in a bloody heap, revealing a skinny, long-haired man dressed in a black skinsuit and a long, purple scarf. In his hand was a long, slender katana drenched in multicoloured monster blood.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Stinger asked, scowling.

The man whipped his katana through the air, cleansing the blade of blood, before sheathing it. He regarded the irritated hero, tilting his head. "I killed the monsters that were about to kill you, yet you aren't grateful?"

Stinger huffed. "I was in control of the situation! You're just trying to steal my credit!"

However, he received a gentle yet taunting laugh in response. "I'm not one of you 'heroes', so fixated on fame and glory. I merely came to test my new combat capabilities. What do you think?"

He spread his arms, gesturing at the array of dead monsters.

Stinger thrust his spear into the ground. "Don't mock me! I am class A rank 11 hero Stinger!"

"So?"

The hero spluttered. "I am both famous and strong! I'm warning you-"

He was cut off by the ninja reappearing behind him. He had moved unimaginably fast - the hero hadn't caught even a glimpse of movement.

"And why should I care?" the man whispered in his ear. "I'm leagues above you in power and speed. You heroes, so caught up in their own glory that they don't know real strength when staring at it in the face."

Before he could respond, Stinger's head was rocked by a sudden, sharp wave of pain as his vision faded to black.

The crowd watching the ninja had grown substantially. Many had come to see what the fuss was about and were shocked to see an unconscious Stinger at the feet of a mysterious man bearing a katana. Fear and uncertainty was starting to spread through the onlookers like a wildfire. Who was this person? Was he friendly? He had killed those monsters but why did he then knock out Stinger?

This was too much to handle for a spectator. Trembling, he shouted, "That man's a monster! He killed Stinger!"

The fear amidst the crowd escalated to a frenzy of fear.

"Run!"

"He's after us next!"

"Someone call a hero!"

The crowd around them quickly deserted the area.

The ninja paid them no mind.

He dusted his hands. Now that the meddling hero was out of the way, he could finally do what he was here to do.

"I know you're watching me."

Behind him, a large, muscular humanoid appeared seemingly out of thin air. He towered menacingly over the ninja, an arrogant leer on his pale green face.

"I suppose you're not a mere weakling after all," he said in a deep, operatic voice.

"And who are you? Judging from that pitiful crown on your head, you're the king of these scum I just killed." Sonic shot back spitefully. He had known that there would be a powerful foe here. The scans had told him so. But he was a little disappointed in the energy he felt emanating from the monster in front of him - it was no stronger than him, perhaps even a little weaker.

"Why, yes I am. I am the Deep Sea King," the monster replied. "And I will make you suffer for what you did to my children."

Sonic spat on a dead monster. "You call these idiots your children? I killed them with a single slice."

The Deep Sea King's grin grew wider. "I would mind your words if I were you. I'm not in a very good mood right now." He leaned forward, bringing his face inches away from the ninja. "You killed my children."

Sonic wrinkled his nose. "Your breath stinks."

Suddenly, leapt out of the way of a giant green fist hurtling towards his midsection. He then avoided a series of punches with multiple handsprings.

"You call yourself a 'king'. How pitiful, you can't even graze me." Sonic taunted.

The giant monster growled in anger. "I shall crush you under my feet! You have no chance of defeating me!"

However, in response, the ninja simply darted in with lightning speed, aiming his katana at the monster's jugular vein. The Sea King didn't make an effort to block. Sonic swung his blade punishingly, causing a deep gash to appear in his neck, almost down to the bone. Large amounts of blood surged out his open vein, coating the floor with viscous green blood.

But the monster merely laughed.

"A commendable effort, human," he growled. His voice was distorted and airy, the result of his windpipe being cut partially open.

"Commendable? Your neck is half open," Sonic said spitefully. He sheathed his katana, looking away arrogantly.

"Is it?"

Sonic whipped around and glared at the monster.

"What are you…"

Sonic gasped. The deep, mortal wound he had inflicted was shrinking at a considerable rate, and soon it was completely sealed and healed.

The ninja soon regained his composure. The monster's healing had caught him off-guard, that's all. He believed he was still far superior to it - now he knew he had to cut off its head with a single slice.

* * *

On a rooftop nearby, a muscular young man stood watching the drama below with arms crossed across his chest. He was sporting a black outfit with yellow lining. His yellow hair was slicked up to a point.

"Why have they stopped?" he thought. "That ninja is clearly superior to that monster, he should finish him already."

He felt the first few drops of rain touch his skin.

As the rain increased in intensity, his eyes widened as he observed a large increase in the monster's size. They were fighting again, but the green monster seemed to now have the upper hand - its speed had increased substantially with its strength. The ninja was still faster, but the monster was relentless in its attacks. He could see the monster's attacks getting closer and closer to the ninja's lithe form.

He stepped forward, but a deep feminine voice said behind him, "Please don't go and try and fight them. You're no match."

The yellow-haired hero span around, gasping. Behind him was a large, even more muscular man. For some reason, he was wearing striped prison clothing. A clearly useless iron ball was chained to his leg.

Seeing the shock on the hero's face, the man said, placing a hand on his chest, "I am Puri Puri Prisoner, S class rank 17. And you are hero Lightning Max, A class rank 19. I broke out of prison just to see you, I've had my eye on you for some time now."

Lightning Max spluttered in shock. "How- Why- What?"

"Why am I a prisoner?" Puri Puri Prisoner replied in a delicate fashion. "Well, I just can't resist attacking beautiful young men, that's all."

"Are you going to…" Lightning Max said, trailing off. If Puri Puri Prisoner attacked him, he didn't have much of a chance, the prisoner was a whole class above him. He started to edge backwards.

"No, no, no. Please, don't be scared." Puri Puri Prisoner said, trying to console the panicking hero. "I have no interest in you at the moment. We have much more pressing matters to deal with right now, don't we?"

He gestured at the combat below. Now, the tide had turned. The ninja was on the defensive, avoiding or parrying the blows the monster was launching. The monster had grown considerably in size. Its speed and strength seemed to have multiplied, and along with that, it looked as if it had infinite stamina. The ninja was barely keeping up, and he looked as if he'd suffered a few glancing blows.

"He wasn't that strong before," Lightning Max commented. Him and Puri Puri Prisoner were now standing at the edge of the rooftop, watching the intense combat unfolding down below.

"Indeed," Puri Puri Prisoner replied. "Perhaps the rain boosted his power somehow?"

"That would make sense." Lightning Max said. "He came from the sea. Being on dry land would probably have dried him out, the rain's providing him the moisture he lacks."

"That's a very astute observation, Lightning Max," Puri Puri Prisoner complemented. "It also has potent regenerative abilities. The ninja (who doesn't look bad, by the way) also has regenerative abilities, but nowhere near as fast as the monster."

The shorter hero was slightly taken aback by the other hero's comment but decided it wasn't worth following up upon. "Should we go help him? The monster's gonna kill the ninja soon if we don't intervene. With both of our power combined, we should be able to take it on. Even you yourself should be able to kill the monster, you're an S class after all."

"Indeed, it does look like its power increase has put our ninja friend on a back foot. But don't overestimate my power. It's safer to work together," the prisoner reasoned. "Shall we go and help him?"

The heroes made ready to jump down but Lightning Max hesitated. "Didn't that ninja guy knock Stinger out?"

"He did, yes, but the monster's the bigger threat currently." Puri Puri Prisoner replied. "We'll take care of the ninja after we deal with it. I'm sure he had a reason to knock out little Stinger."

Lightning Max looked Stinger worriedly but then nodded, determined. "Okay."

The heroes landed near the combat just as the ninja was being punched into the building they were just standing on. He staggered out of the hole he had made in the wall, disorientated and in pain. Blood was seeping out from his nose and he walked with an uneven gait.

The monster was completely unharmed.

"Oho, reinforcements are here!" the monster said tauntingly. "And just in time! I was becoming tired of my plaything."

The ninja gritted his teeth but didn't respond to the jab. Instead, he turned to the two newcomers. "Stay out of my way if you don't want to get killed." he said coldly. "This fight's between us, and us only."

The Deep Sea King laughed. "Oh, Sonic," he said, leering at the battered ninja. "It would be a grave mistake for you to not accept help. Look at me! I'm untouched, yet you look as if you've been chewed by a shark."

He grinned widely, displaying the array of large dagger-like teeth in his mouth.

Anger flashed across Sonic's face. He drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He replied in a calm and collected manner. "Your arrogance will lead to your death-"

He shouted in agony as the Deep Sea King's fist crashed into his stomach. He was given no respite as the monster struck his head repeatedly, sending him flying. The ninja landed in a heap, finally unconscious after his futile struggle.

The heroes' mouths fell open as they watched the ninja being defeated so easily. Lightning Max looked at the ninja in despair. If he was dispatched so easily, he really stood no chance. But he had no choice but to face the monster. He was a hero and it was his duty to fight and protect.

"On three…" Puri Puri Prisoner started.

* * *

Saitama and Holocho were relaxing, watching the news, while Genos washed the dishes. They had just finished their meal and were feeling rather satisfied. Genos had once again whipped together a delicious meal and the fact that he had such high quality ingredients made the food even better.

Currently, the heroes were watching a live broadcast of the situation in J City. The two heroes fighting the mysterious green sea monster were just about keeping up with its speed, but the yellow-haired hero was starting to tire. He also seemed to be a mere nuisance - the prisoner guy was doing most the work. However, the news presenter didn't seem to notice and was cheering on the pair enthusiastically.

"Should we go help them?" Holocho asked. He was starting to fear for the heroes. That 'Lightning Max' was not going to last long.

"They can handle it," Satiama said casually. "Also, they're in J City. That's too far away."

Holocho frowned. He was becoming impatient, his body aching for action to help digest the banquet they had just eaten, but he trusted Saitama's judgement.

Genos's phone rang. He stopped drying the dishes and answered it. "Hello?"

His face grew grim. "City J? That is a little far… Are no capable heroes nearby…? I see, understood… I may not arrive in time, but I will leave now."

"What's up, Genos?" Holocho asked, looking up from the news programme.

"I've been called to deal with the monster on TV." Genos said, gesturing at the Deep Sea King. "The Hero Association fears the heroes won't last much longer."

"See? Let's go!" Holocho said enthusiastically.

Saitama sighed. "Fine, but we'll have to hurry."

* * *

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the longer chapter. This is how it's gonna be from now on, a new, longer chapter posted every fortnight. It leaves more time for me to write and edit each chapter.

A weird coincidence - the story section of this chapter (not including the A/N or response to review) is exactly 3333 words.

* * *

Review:

rmarcano321:

Thanks for your continued support.

Blast is a mysterious figure, huh? I may/may not include him, it depends on where the plot ultimately leads. He would be an interesting character to write seeing as much is left to imagination about him.


	16. Last Line of Defence

Lightning Max trembled with exertion. His bruised and battered body screamed for rest, but he pushed on, launching multiple kicks at the green giant that was the Deep Sea King, his leg darting through the multiple openings Puri Puri Prisoner's attack had made. After fighting relentlessly for almost fifteen minutes, the duo of heroes had started working together like a well-oiled machine. Puri Puri Prisoner handled the full-on assault, receiving the brunt of the monster's assault and dishing out damage in return. Lightning Max exploited the openings created by the prisoner's attacks, dealing as much damage as possible in the short windows of opportunity with his explosive-packed kicks.

The two heroes weren't the only ones to experience a growth in ability. As the rain slowly grew heavier, the Deep Sea King was gradually increasing in size, power and speed, rising far above his previous levels.

And while the heroes were tiring fast, the monster's endurance was unending. Lightning Max and Puri Puri Prisoner knew they were fighting an uphill battle where the slope was increasing in steepness. But they had no choice. They had to protect the citizens that had fled to the evacuation shelter; they were the last line of defence until backup arrived and they didn't need any ordinary hero squad, they needed the best of the best - S class heroes. But it looked like they wouldn't receive any aid.

Lightning Max could feel that if help didn't come within the next couple of minutes, the Deep Sea King would overwhelm them for sure.

* * *

Saitama and Holocho hurtled down the highway to J City. It seemed like the entire city had fled via this single highway - beside them and going in the opposite direction was a never-ending river of cars and vans hastily crammed with belongings. However, they had run past what looked like a pickup truck stuffed with an assortment of as many heroes that could fit in and on it. Holocho could see the shock and frustration as they blitzed past them; the heroes in the truck realised that they would never be able to defeat and claim fame from the monster in J City.

Holocho smiled and waved, much to their irritation. The truck quickly disappeared from view.

Genos soared overhead, his rockets trailing long orange streaks of exhaust across the sky. He had his new prototype arms equipped, vastly increasing his speed and power, but he was barely keeping up with the two heroes down below.

"Oi Genos, can't you go any faster?" Holocho shouted impatiently. He was brimming with energy and anticipation; each step he took towards the city in the distance was bringing a potentially exciting closer to him. The monsters he had faced in Z City were merely pests, dispatched in one hit, but the monster in J City was posing a serious threat to both an S class and A class hero combined. He hadn't had a good fight in what felt like forever.

"This is my maximum current speed," Genos replied, shouting over the wind whistling by as he lowered his altitude. "I can push my core above 100%, but that would greatly diminish my combat capabilities."

Holocho huffed but accepted Genos's statements. The trio continued running and flying toward the growing city in the distance in silence.

* * *

Genos had a neat game of Pong going on in his cybernetic mind. He was battling the CPU, locked in an intense rally for the first point. He decided to leave his body in autopilot mode as he diverted more and more of his attention on winning against the CPU which was proving to be a wily foe. Somewhere in the back of Genos's mind, he noted the relentlessness of the CPU's fighting style and how effective it was in picking apart his defences.

Suddenly, he was jerked out of his video game as a call notification popped up on his HUD. His body nearly veered into a car as he transitioned roughly back into manual flight mode.

"I must talk to Dr. Kuseno about that…"

Genos realised who was calling him.

A microphone attachment assembled itself on Genos's cheek. "Hello… yes… I understand. I shall try. Anything else we should know?"

Genos's eyes hardened.

"I understand."

"Wassup, Genos?" Holocho yelled, hearing Genos muttering faintly.

The flying cyborg's serious face somehow grew even more serious. "The Hero Association called. The S rank hero Puri Puri Prisoner and the A rank hero Lightning Max have been defeated in combat. We must hurry, there are no capable heroes able to face the monster left in the area."

"Oh, sounds as if the monster's not too weak," Holocho commented. Frowning, he added, "What's the monster doing now then? Destroying buildings?"

"Its current purposes are unknown, but many civilians will be in danger if it continues in its current path." replied Genos. "To the evacuation shelter."

Holocho nodded. Turning to Saitama, he asked, "Should we speed up?"

The caped baldy had overheard their conversation. He no longer bore his trademark dull, expressionless visage.

"Yes."

"See you later Genos!" Holocho called as they increased their speed.

The two heroes disappeared into the distance, leaving Genos behind in the dust. He stared down the long highway in awe at the heroes' tremendous speed. Shaking himself back to his senses, the cyborg accepted what he had to do to stand even a small chance of catching up to them before the monster was defeated.

"Power up core to 200%."

His body flared with harsh orange light. The energy gauges in his HUD shot all the way into their warning zones. Crimson alerts flashed urgently, warning Genos of the great strain his decision had induced on his body.

As Genos's velocity skyrocketed, he mentally praised his master's wise methods and teachings.

Sometimes one just had to make compromises.

* * *

J City was fast approaching the two heroes on the ground.

"Hey mister, do you know where the emergency shelter is?"

"Oh, I don't."

Holocho face-palmed. They didn't know where they were going. By now, they were deep within the concrete labyrinth of the city.

"Shouldn't we stop and look it up or something?"

* * *

The Deep Sea King walked steadily, leaving large footsteps imprinted on the tarmac behind him. Unbeknownst to him, he was walking in the direction of the evacuation shelter where many of the city's fleeing citizens had sheltered, waiting out the invasion of the Sea Folk.

The monster was in a good mood. He had just disposed of the two arrogant gnats that called themselves 'heroes'. At first, he had played around with them out of pure sadistic boredom, but they had quickly grown irritating - the burlier of the two exceptionally so. Everything about him had been so… extra. Extravagant. He felt a deep disgust towards him even now, especially after he had transformed into that ghastly 'Angel Mode'.

The Deep Sea King shuddered at the memory of the fully nude Puri Puri Prisoner.

As for the other pest… well, he was just another weakling crushed underfoot.

However, the first human he'd faced was an oddity. He seemed to have no allegiance to monster or man but instead seemed to fight for his own cause. Not that he had anything against that, but the human fighters he had observed from the depths of the sea all belonged to some sort of organisation that protected the weaker humans. Maybe that man had been part of a rival organisation?

The Deep Sea King cast that thought aside. The human was an interesting opponent, a challenge in his dried-up form, but, like the other heroes, he'd been weak, far too weak to even properly injure him.

A faint scent drifted into his nose. The monster took a deep breath, inhaling a vast lungful of air.

"Aaahhh…" he growled, a low, distorted rumble. "I can sense them. Multiple presences."

He traced the scent through the air. It lead his nose towards a large concrete dome rising out among the buildings not very far away. The Deep Sea King's fish-like face twisted into an expression of relish and hunger. The humans had all gathered in a single building. It was going to be a massacre.

* * *

"Papa!" a young child called, looking up to his father with wide eyes. "Are those big scary monsters still outside?"

His father, an average man with blonde curly hair and well-defined jawline smiled down at his son reassuringly. "Don't worry! Someone will defeat them!" he said confidently. "We're safe in this shelter anyway! A single monster can't take on 5000 people at once!"

He gestured at the large crowds of people standing around in the massive arena. Sounds of chatter and laughter filled the air, everyone evidently relaxed, confident in the ability of the heroes sent to face the threat outside. Either that or the Hero Association staff were doing a good job in keeping them and the atmosphere in general calm.

The arena shook as a tremendous force assaulted it from the outside. The lights flickered, plunging them into darkness.

Before the refugees had time to scream, a gaping hole formed on the side of the shelter. Dark light and rain spilled in. A monstrous looming shadow appeared amongst the dust and debris.

The Deep Sea King bared his teeth in a vicious predatory grin. His eyes widened in excitement.

"Nice to meet you!. And goodbye!"

The refugees screamed in terror. This monster had broken through what they had thought was an impenetrable shelter wall. They stood no hope of surviving.

"Wait! We surrender! If you have a demand, we'll meet it!" a wavering voice shouted. The screaming and panic faded as a brave soul stood up to their doom. "Just don't attack us! Please!"

The man gulped nervously. Multiple beads of sweat dotted his face as he realised what he was doing - standing up to a monster that had broken through a missile - proof shelter with only two hits. The man - a C class hero who went by the name of Allback-Man - raised his shaking hands in a universal gesture of surrender.

The monster paused, seeming to consider his offer. Suddenly, his mouth gaped and the monster bellowed with scornful laughter. "Surrender? You die either way! I'm still gonna kill you! My demand is that you scream! I'm gonna slowly rip you all limb from limb!"

A terrible chill descended over the refugees. Icy fingers of fear crept down their paralysed spines. Each and every one of them realised that they wouldn't be able to survive the next few minutes. They needed a miracle.

Thoughts raced through the hero's mind, each one getting more desperate than the last.

"Is he mad because heroes killed his buddies? This is really bad…"

"It's pitiful, but I should stall until S class and A class heroes arrive. Or should i join arms with the men here?"

"No, this monster broke into a missile-proof shelter. How can I buy time? He's gonna attack any second!"

His legs blossomed with warm moisture.

"Oops…"

"I peed my pants…"

"I'm so pitiful…"

The monster stepped forward, looming over the lone hero. Its mouth opened wide in a grisly smile, its sadistic mind going crazy with anticipation as it prepared to devour the fragrant morsels of meat that stood helpless before him.

"Hyaah!" a man shouted, rushing to Allback-man's side. The B class hero Jet Niceguy had stepped up, overcoming his paralyzing fear. If he was gonna die, the white and red android thought, he may as well face it head-on.

"G...Graah! I'm gonna fight too!" shouted another man, the C class hero Bunbun man, jumping to join the heroes at their side, his muscles bulging with tension. His large black afro glistened with sweat.

Another man leaped into formation, hands moving in snake-like fashion as he settled into a fighting stance. "Cool… Let's work together." 'Snakebite Fist' Snek said, gathering his nerves as he tried to sound as cool and collected as possible. "At rank 38, I may be at the bottom, but I'm still class A. Let's do this!"

The refugees blinked and stared at the four brave men before them. They muttered amongst themselves, wondering if what they were seeing was real.

"Heroes?"

"There were heroes here?"

The hopes and morale of the terrified crowd started to shoot up, buoyed by the sight of the valiant knights facing off against almost certain doom. Their chatter rose in volume until it became a roar of relief and hope.

But they were silenced by the sight of the four heroes being violently and ruthlessly batted away, the monster sending them flying into the shelter walls with a single swipe.

"Quiet, weaklings!"

The monster rose to its full height, towering menacingly over the panic-stricken refugees.

"Now, beg and plead before me like the worms you are as I devour you all!"

* * *

Genos stood on the edge of the hole the Deep Sea King had smashed open in the side of the shelter, observing the monster below. He could see the unfortunate fates of four brave heroes who had tried to stand up to the beast - smashed into a wall, knocked senseless. This monster was evidently not your garden variety threat. He would have to take this more seriously.

After a brief moment of hesitation, the cyborg leaped into the air, landing smoothly before the giant monster. Underneath his wet blonde hair were a pair of fiery, glowing amber eyes.

"Oho! A challenger appears!" rumbled the Deep Sea King. "But I'm afraid I don't have the time for any more scuffles-"

"I am here to eliminate you." Genos stated. He charged forwards, putting all his power into increasing his velocity to the max in the short amount of space between him and the Deep Sea King, resulting in an explosive flash of blinding light bursting out from his rocket boosters. Just before he reached the off-guard monster, he brought his arm forth in a lightning-fast punch. Genos could feel skin torn and bones shattered by his metal fist as it made contact with the monster's jaw. But Genos wasn't done. Machinery embedded on his forearm unfolded, exposing multiple incineration cannons that released several intense jets of fire into the monster's face.

The Deep Sea King soared into and through the evacuation shelter's wall, carried by the sheer force of Genos's flames. The shell-shocked refugees could the monster's screams fading into the distance. As the smoke and flames cleared, all that was left was a smouldering hole in the wall of the shelter and multiple buildings behind.

Genos looked through the hole in the wall vigilantly, combing the streets beyond with his optical sensors. He could hear the people behind cheering in relief and joy, but knew better. This monster had astonishing regenerative abilities, shown by the fact that it wasn't at all injured when Genos finally caught up to it despite it having fought against an S class hero and several others.

His vigilance paid off. From the corner of his eye, Genos could see a large figure hurtling towards him at a startling speed. He blasted backwards in a back flip, narrowly dodging a grab that would have definitely ended badly for him.

The Deep Sea King had evidently been injured. Its face was deformed - its cheek had a large hole, showing the monster's lethal blade-like teeth, and Its jaw was bent to one side. But that didn't stop the monster from being any less murderous.

"Now I'm mad!" the monster snarled through its mangled mouth. "I'm going to mess you up!"

Genos settled into a defensive fighting stance.

"Escape now!" he yelled at the onlookers. "You will be caught in the crossfire if you stay!"

The refugees were thrown once more into a great panic.

"Run away!"

"Get outta my way!"

"Craaap!"

The Deep Sea King felt as if its blood vessels were about to burst. With an insane, delirious grin, it yelled, "Not one of you… Is getting away!"

It burst forward in a rush of speed, forcing Genos to fire up his boosters to meet it in a head-on collision. The monster savagely punched at Genos's face while the cyborg attempted a kick at its now fully-healed face. His foot planted itself square in the monster's face. However, the monster's punch thudded into Genos's forearm, warping the tough metal. Boosters in Genos's heel fired up, delivering a blast of flame onto the monster's head, obscuring its view, while propelling the cyborg away from the Deep Sea King's wild punches.

The monster yelled in pain and anger, but was given no respite as Genos assaulted it with a series of punches, hammering the monster's body. With a finishing uppercut, he ended his combo with an attack that launched the monster up and through the wall of the shelter.

The Deep Sea King smiled as he soared through the air. The cyborg was making a fatal mistake - exposing him to water. But his smile was quickly wiped off his face as orange flames engulfed him from below.

The monster roared in agony, but it had a counter - it puffed out its body, expelling air, dissipating the cyborg's flames. However, Genos was quick to press his advantage. Flying into the air above the monster, he gathered energy in his eyes.

"Lightning Eye!"

His eyes let out a blinding flash of light. The light washed over the monster, penetrating deep into its eyes.

"My eyes!" it exclaimed.

Genos grimly noted the effectiveness of his stunning attack as he clamped his arms together and brought his fists down on the monster's face, sending it hurtling into the shelter. He quickly followed up, rocketing into the monster and launching another vicious combo attack.

"Machine gun Blows!"

Genos's fists were sledgehammers, brutally striking the stunned monster over and over. The shelter walls gave away from the force of his blows, sending them plummeting into the floor below, Genos pummelling the Deep Sea King as they fell. They landed in a heavy heap, throwing up dust and debris. Fleeing civilians stopped to gape, but they continued fleeing with renewed fear at the sight of the Deep Sea King striking at Genos with all his strength once again, the impact of his fist crashing against Genos's forearm blowing away the dust.

The Deep Sea King laughed maniacally as he pushed against Genos, slowly forcing him down.

A small girl, holding the hand of her father as she fled, saw Genos's struggles against the giant, terrorising monster. She clutched her teddy bear tighter in her grasp as she her terrified and innocent mind decided that she would support him as best she could.

"You can do it!" her small voice called out.

Genos heard her support and smiled internally. It was always good to know that people supported him, especially when he was fighting a tough foe like the monster before him. But his gratefulness suddenly turned to horror as he observed the Deep Sea King's actions.

"Silence!" the monster yelled, spitting a glob of green saliva. As it arced towards the girl, the monster gloated, "Now you melt!"

"No!" Genos shouted, realising the danger the girl was now in. Using his free hand, he fired a wide beam of flame, hoping to evaporate the acid before it landed on the girl. The flames engulfed the spit, successfully evaporating it, but in his moment of distraction, the Deep Sea King brought his other hand into play, punching Genos deep into the ground.

Genos grunted in pain and surprise. He tried to bring up a defence against the Deep Sea King, but it was no use. The monster took full advantage of Genos's incapacitation, launching a barrage of blows. Each punch shook Genos to the core and he was helpless against it.

"Structural integrity at 60% and decreasing!" he thought urgently, eyes darting from notification to notification in his HUD. "Lightning Eye disabled!"

The Deep Sea King laughed sadistically. "How does it feel, worm? To have your own attack used against you!"

Genos inhaled deeply.

The Deep Sea King heard him. Leering, he taunted, "Oh? You're still not done? Do you have another worthless card up your sleeve?"

"300%!"

Light and flame burst out of Genos, engulfing the entire area with a bright, searing inferno. The monster flew backwards, knocked away by the explosion of power that rushed out of Genos. The Cyborg now glowed red, the result of the insane amount of heat his stressed and pushed core was giving out.

"You're dead."

* * *

A/N: Things are starting to heat up. Man, I love writing Genos.

I'm happy it's the holidays now, I can finally get some rest. I hope you all have a good Christmas.

* * *

Review:

rjconanan333: Thanks!


	17. Rain and Doubt

Holocho was getting annoyed.

He'd been running around blindly in J City for 15 minutes now and he couldn't find an evacuation shelter anywhere. What made it worse was the fact that he had heard Genos flying overhead, but Holocho had been caught off-guard and had no way of following the surprisingly fast cyborg aside from the sound of his rockets.

His phone wasn't working either. Today of all days, his mobile data had decided to run out, leaving him clueless about where to go.

Somehow, Holocho had also missed all the road signs that pointed the way to the shelter.

He wondered how Saitama was getting on. They had decided to split up in the hopes of at least one of them finding the shelter - Saitama also having no way to find the shelter due to his phone being out of charge. Holocho hoped that the baldy hadn't found his way to the shelter. If he had, the boy's chances of having a decent fight would be dashed.

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sound of Genos's incineration cannons going off in the distance. Holocho immediately perked up. Jumping onto the roof of the tallest building in his proximity, he scanned the city for any trace of Genos's iconic yellow incineration beam. His eyes locked onto a large dome-shaped building. It had two gaping holes in its wall. The lower of the two had smoke rising from it.

He quickly put two and two together. With a grin, he ran and jumped towards the shelter. He felt dumb for not realising that the domed building was the evacuation shelter, he had even run past it several times, but the prospect of a good fight had him pumped up.

The sight of Saitama standing on a rooftop quickly turned his excitement into confusion. He guided his next jump to land him next to the caped baldy.

"Why aren't you not going in?" Holocho asked.

Maintaining his usual semi-bored expression, Saitama replied. "Genos's already started fighting. He doesn't need my help."

Holocho frowned. If Saitama thought that Genos would be fine, that meant that the monster wasn't really a big deal after all. He let out a small sigh. His hopes were dashed after all.

"I'm starting to understand how you feel," Holocho said as he sat down on the edge of the rooftop.

"Huh?"

"Fighting monsters is just so… boring. It always ends so quickly. Every time a new monster shows up I get excited, but it's always a let down."

Saitama sat down beside him. "It's not always about fighting, kid. Being a hero's much more than that."

Holocho tilted his head, but that was all the wisdom Saitama was going to offer. Saitama was a puzzle to Holocho. Sometimes he would be all wise, but at other times... whatever. He couldn't be bothered to think about that. They sat in silence, patiently waiting for Genos to finish up.

The Deep Sea King suddenly burst through the shelter wall into the air. Genos was right behind the monster, jumping up above the writhing king. Without warning, a bright flash of light was emitted from the cyborg's eye.

"Ow! That's bright!" Holocho hissed, blinking hard to get the spots out of his eyes. He heard no response from Saitama. He glanced over at the caped baldy only to see him engrossed in some game on his new 3DS. "Saitama!"

"Yes?" he replied, not looking up from his game.

"Didn't you see that flash?"

"No," Saitama replied. "Did something happen?"

Holocho huffed in annoyance. His interest turned to what Saitama was holding. "When did you get that 3DS? I haven't seen you play on that before."

"I got it from a store here," Saitama replied nonchalantly.

"You stole it?!" Holocho exclaimed. There was no one around anymore - they had all evacuated.

"I left money on the counter. That counts as payment."

Holocho crossed his arms in annoyance. Then he realised that he had brought, for some peculiar reason, his wallet with him. His face brightened. "Be right back!"

The boy quickly found the store Saitama had obtained the device from. Its door had been forced open, but Holocho paid it no mind. Saitama had probably accidentally pushed a little too hard on it. Holocho sometimes did that too; it was hard to restrain his enormous strength at times. He swiftly found the 3DS he was looking for and left money on the counter.

With a leap, he rejoined Saitama at the edge of the rooftop and booted on his console with anticipation and dived right into a game. So engrossed was he, he didn't notice the numerous screams, explosions and crashes that were coming from the arena. Nor did he notice the surges of flame and smoke until the building they were sitting on started collapsing from the force of one of Genos's stray incineration beams.

"Woah!" he shouted as he and a disgruntled Saitama slipped off the rooftop. He cradled his brand new device to his chest, protecting it from the hard pavement below. He landed gently and ran a short distance away to avoid the debris from the crumbling building.

"It's heating up in there, huh," he thought. Beside him, Saitama sat on a nearby bench and continued his game. Instead of joining him, Holocho decided to see what all the fuss was about. Maybe he could help Genos.

He jogged up to a massive hole in the shelter wall and peered inside. The fight was still going on at full intensity. Genos seemed to be dominating, attacking the monster with a blitz of strikes. However, his punches and kicks didn't have any real effect on the Deep Sea King - each blow Genos landed sank deep into the monster's flesh, but the wounds quickly regenerated, leaving no visible mark on the monster's skin.

Genos, on the other hand, was visibly tiring. His body had taken on a fiery red hue, which Holocho recognised as the result of Genos pushing his power core to the limit, but the increased power and speed weren't doing the cyborg any good. Instead, Holocho could tell that each successive blow Genos was landing was gradually getting weaker and weaker. The Deep Sea King also appeared to notice this.

"What's wrong? Getting tired are you?" the monster taunted as he was being pummelled. "I can barely feel your feeble punches!"

Genos's amber eyes brightened in intensity. Ducking under the Deep Sea King's counterattack, he drove a fiery punch into the monster's gut. The monster was sent flying, writhing in pain, bursting through the shelter wall once again, narrowly missing Holocho's head. Genos quickly pressed his advantage, following up with a series of incineration blasts preceding a barrage of punches, burying the monster into the ground.

The Deep Sea King merely laughed. "You fool! You've exposed me to my natural element! Water!"

With a single move, the monster leapt to its feet, shaking off its attacker. As Genos flew through the air in an uncontrolled tumble, the Deep Sea King grabbed his leg and slammed him back into the ground creating a deep crater in the road. The monster tore Genos from the crater and repeatedly slammed the helpless cyborg into the road. Parts flew from the cyborg as he slowly broke apart under the strain. His red hue was gone.

Holocho winced as he watched the Deep Sea King toss Genos around like a rag doll. He was not the only one watching - the fleeing refugees had returned, gathering at the mouth of the hole Genos's incineration blast had torn open.

"He's gonna die isn't he?" a man said, his voice rising in panic. "He's gonna die! Then we're gonna die!"

"Don't say that!" another cut in. "There's gotta be another hero here somewhere. It's not over yet."

"Oh my god we're gonna die!" the man screamed, ignoring him.

Holocho huffed in annoyance. He stood from his position beside the hole the refugees were peering through. He'd better intervene before Genos was dismantled or the crowd started panicking. He stored his 3DS safely inside a trouser pocket.

His actions drew the attention of the monster. It threw Genos over its shoulder as it turned to face him. "I suppose you are my next victim."

The crowd of refugees silenced at the sight of Holocho striding confidently towards the Deep Sea King. Speculative murmurs broke out amongst the crowd.

"Who's he meant to be?"

"Isn't he that new A class hero?"

"He's got no chance!"

Holocho stopped a short distance away from the monster and crossed his arms.

"What are you doing?" the monster rumbled. "Are you not going to attack?"

The monster's face pulled into a distorted grin. "The longer you wait, the stronger I'll get!"

The Deep Sea King was visibly growing. The heavy downpour of rain was moisturising and rejuvenating the ocean monster.

Still, Holocho stood with his arms crossed.

The monster snarled. "If you're not going to, I will!"

The Deep Sea King rushed forward in a burst of speed, launching a single powerful punch at the much smaller boy. It missed.

The monster frowned. Maybe it was imagining things. He punched again, missing once again. Growling in anger, the monster unleashed a blur of punches, each and every one of them missing. Somehow, the boy had dodged them all without moving a single step.

The Deep Sea King was infuriated. "How dare you mock me! Stop dodging!"

Holocho suddenly stopped moving and held up his hand. The monster's fist rammed into Holocho's unmoving palm. He could feel the Deep Sea King's hand snap and break, the result of when the monster's fist finally impacted something that wouldn't shatter and break before it.

Holocho smirked.

For several seconds, the Deep Sea King simply looked at his fist in shock.

"Aaarrgghh!" the monster screamed, clutching its broken hand with its uninjured counterpart.

Holocho moved back into his arrogant stance, arms folded across his chest, watching the giant monster writhe in pain.

The Deep Sea King's composure slowly recovered, its hand healing quickly.

"You are clearly a much stronger foe," the monster said while nursing its hand. "Perhaps you will match me in battle."

The monster loomed over the boy, claws exposed, mouth wide open, revealing a snake-like tongue. "But you've made me angry, so die!"

The Deep Sea King charged at the hero. But in a blink of an eye, the king's head separated itself from its body.

"What?" the bodiless Deep Sea King asked. The king's eyes attempted to look down at its body, but instead of the green tower of muscle, there was empty space. "Where's my body?"

"You're still alive?" Holocho said as he tried to shake off the monster's green blood from his shoe.

"Of course I'm still alive! What sort of king wouldn't be able to live without a body!?" came the angry retort.

Holocho walked over to the bodiless monster and loomed over it, imitating the monster's actions when it had a body. He leaned over the head, raising his hands in a claw-like fashion.

"How does it feel to be the shorty now, huh?"

"Stop taunting me!" the monster yelled. It opened its mouth wide, attempting to utilise its snake-tongue. Holocho grabbed it before it could bite him.

"Gross!"

He quickly stamped down on the monster's head, severing the tongue. He quickly dropped the tongue in disgust.

The Deep Sea King hissed in pain. It glared hatefully up at Holocho. "You'll pay for your mockery, boy! Once I recover, I'll tear you apart!"

The boy rinsed his hands in the rainwater. "And how are you meant to do that? You're a head!"

He glanced down at the head's neck. It was no longer a bloody stump, a body was quickly reforming. "Oh! You can still regenerate!"

The Deep Sea King grinned devilishly. "That's right, boy! Once my body is fully formed, I'll turn you into a bloody paste!"

Holocho opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the sound of whirring in front of him. He looked up to see Genos charging up his only undamaged incineration cannon.

He was in a bad state. His body was bent and misshapen. Sparks flashed across exposed areas of circuitry, the armour covering it being smashed or ripped off. His eyes flickered unevenly, the amber glow sometimes flickering red or off completely.

"Please move out the way." he said, his voice steady and cold.

"Sure!" Holocho said, shrugging. He stepped to one side.

"No! Wait!" the monster suddenly pleaded. "I promise I won't tear-"

A large beam of fire engulfed the head. When it faded away, there was no trace of the head left.

Genos sank to his knees, the blast having used up much of his remaining energy. His power core was incredibly damaged - it was only producing energy at 3% capacity. In front of him, a roar of cheers rang out from the refugees. The monster had finally died, and with that the mortal danger had gone.

Down the street, a man wearing orange body armour and a green helmet stood holding a bicycle. He smiled. "Well, I guess I'm not needed now." He turned and rode back down the street.

Saitama looked up from his game, taking in the sight of the jubilant crowd and the still-smoking Genos.

"Huh. They've finished."

He stood and patted himself and put away his 3DS.

A single nasally voice shocked the crowd into silence. "Maybe the monster wasn't that strong after all."

The refugees turned to look in confusion and anger at the man who spoke. He was a short, pudgy man. A weasely smile was written across his face.

"What do you mean? It took out so many heroes!" another said.

"Maybe those heroes were just wimps," the weasely man said.

"But… uh… that monster did look weak just now, but-"

"That class A hero decapitated it with a single kick! Those other heroes must really suck! They call themselves class S and class A, but that newbie killed it almost effortlessly!"

"Hey! What's your problem! Those guys risked their lives for us!" a man said in protest.

The weasely man spread his arms, smirking. "Anyone can risk their life! But you can't be a hero without beating monsters! A lot of heroes were seriously injured this time! Can we really rely on them next time?"

Holocho jumped into the conversation. He stood on the lip of the hole in the wall, glaring down at the weasel. "Just because they didn't beat the monster, that doesn't mean that they aren't heroes!"

He gestured at the body of the Deep Sea King. "That monster there was really tough! It even took out two S class heroes! You can't expect every hero that turns up to beat it!"

The weasel laughed. "I'm not saying that, kid. What I'm trying to get you all to realise is that this 'Hero Association' is a waste of money! We pay them so much, but almost all the heroes they send out fail! Is it worth it? They should be doing a better job! Are they throwing our money down the drain? Are they even using all our money?"

Holocho hopped down from the hole and walked right up to the weasely man.

"You go out there and try fighting monsters. It's really, really hard to fight and it takes real guts to put your life on the line like that. That's why there are heroes. People who are brave enough to risk it all to protect others. And only heroes are capable enough to face them. If you say the Hero Association should do a better job, well, they can't! Heroes are limited by their abilities! It's like saying… uh…"

Holocho waved his arm in the air as he tried to think of an example.

The weasel took this as an opportunity to interject. "If heroes are weak, then what's the point of them being heroes? As you said, heroes are limited by their ability. If they are weak, they can't protect us, which makes them worthless!"

Holocho fumed. This man wouldn't stop bad mouthing heroes, even after they gave their all to protect him. His sheer ungratefulness made him wonder what was wrong with this man to make him behave in such a snobbish way.

A burly man grabbed the detractor's shirt, lifting him up. "What's your problem!? Those heroes were seriously injured to protect you! Be grateful!"

The plump man started sweating furiously. "I can't be to blame for their weakness!"

He pointed at the heavily damaged Genos. "It's embarrassing when weaklings like him go in and almost get killed! I wish they'd just stop!"

"Oi! Stop it! We're alive! Isn't that enough?" someone person shouted.

"Yeah! Those other heroes didn't do much, but it's wrong to pick on them! As Brutal Tempest said, not every hero is strong enough, but that doesn't mean you can insult them like that!"

The crowd started shouting in support of the heroes, drowning out the detractor's objections. They started to get violent, pushing and shoving the pudgy man, much to his fright. Before things escalated out of hand, the crowd was silenced by a sharp crack. Holocho had fired off a wave punch, the sonic booms quieting the riled-up crowd.

"Stop that! As much as you all want to punish that guy, it's still wrong to pick on someone like that! We're all humans here!"

The burly man let go of the weasel's shirt. Dropping to the floor with a thud, the detractor stood and smiled his weasely smile. "See? The kid gets it-"

Another sharp crack broke the man's sentence in half. Holocho fixed him with the most steely glare he could muster. "This doesn't mean I support you. I just don't want you to be killed."

He leaped away onto the street outside. For a few moments, the refugees stood around, unsure as to what to do. They then realised that they had places to be, people to meet, and slowly started dissipating through the various exits, but not before giving the detractor distasteful glares.

Genos and Saitama sat nearby under a bus shelter. They had moved there, seeking shelter from the rain, after seeing that Holocho still had some business with the crowd of refugees. Genos stood as Holocho approached.

"Holocho, I must commend you for how you handled the situation. That man was a twisted, unappreciative worm. Well done for putting him in his place."

Holocho scratched the back of his head. "Well, I don't think I really convinced him that he was wrong… I was just really angry and blurted out the first thing I thought of!"

Saitama stood and packed his little console away. "What happened?" he asked innocently. He looked at the weather. "Crap, it's still raining."

"Master, Holocho had an argument with a man who refused to appreciate the efforts of the numerous fallen heroes. He put him in his place."

"Good." Saitama said sternly, turning back to face Holocho.

The boy grinned. "Hi five!"

Saitama's expression quickly turned into confusion. "What?"

"Just put your hand up!"

"Okay…"

"Genos, get down!" Holocho said cheerfully. The cyborg dived into a prone position, just in time to avoid a powerful shockwave released by Holocho forcefully punching Saitama's hand.

"Why…?" Saitama asked, before trailing off. Above him, the rain clouds were blown away by the power of Holocho's punch. A clear blue sky presented itself, the sun's welcoming rays embracing them with warmth and cheer.

"Huh. Not bad."

Genos took in a deep breath. That boy changed moods in a blink of an eye. He was lucky he hadn't been shattered, like the bust shelter they'd been standing under.

* * *

A/N: I hope you all had a good Christmas and New Year. (That 3DS bit wasn't product placement btw!)

* * *

Reviews:

rmarcano321: Merry belated Christmas! I have a few new monsters in store, yes.

Zero: Good to see you're enjoying reading…


	18. Master of Stealth

"97… 98… 99… 100!"

Speed-o'-Sound collapsed to the ground, heaving deep breaths as he lay spread-eagled on the white-tiled floor.

"Well done, Sonic. You have now surpassed your record by 80 one-armed handstand pushups. A truly impressive feat," a white-coated man said.

The ninja gave no response, but a hint of satisfaction appeared on his damp, sweaty face.

After a few seconds of typing into a handheld tablet, his hand moving in a blur, the assistant announced, "Your strength and fitness tests are now complete."

Sonic sprang to his feet, now completely recovered from his ordeals. He wiped his sweat away with a black sleeve as he walked over to the lab assistant. "So? What are the results?"

The man in the lab coat scrutinized the tablet he held in his hand. "From what I can see, the Deep Sea King's DNA has improved your strength five fold. Your endurance has also improved 10 fold. We believe this is the result of your muscle cells regenerating as you-"

"I'm not interested in the details," The ninja cut in coldly. "Tell me what's important. Can I beat him yet?"

Sonic said 'him' as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

The assistant smiled coolly. "Current predictions indicate a close but decisive defeat. Holocho can still overwhelm your regenerative abilities despite their significant increase in potency. Chances are that he will finish you like how he finished the Deep Sea King - a brutal decapitation. And, unlike the monster, you will be unable to survive with just a head."

Sonic had been getting progressively irritated at the scientist's words.

"Why am I still inferior?" the ninja said with controlled anger. He crossed his muscular arms. "Weeks of experimenting, training and waiting and I'm still so weak. And you promised that I would be far stronger within mere days."

The assistant calmly looked up to the eyes of the taller ninja. "We promised to make you stronger than the Holocho that defeated you. You have now surpassed him by a large margin, but recent evidence has shown that the boy had been significantly holding back on you when you were defeated."

The ninja nodded slowly.

"Also, the potential of the monster's genes have not been fully unlocked. You are utilising around 50% of the Deep Sea King's regenerative abilities. With another week of experimentation, we should be able to fully exploit and possibly improve the Deep Sea King's genes and implement them into your body. If not for the heavy burns the head had received, we would have done so already."

The ninja nodded firmly. "Good."

He walked past the assistant out of the testing chamber.

As he progressed down the long hallways of the underground complex, he heard a shout from the assistant from inside the testing chamber. "I would suggest you get some real-life training to familiarise yourself with your new abilities!"

Sonic smiled crookedly. He had been planning to do precisely so, and he had a perfect training dummy in mind.

* * *

Genos sped through the vast airspace between A and Z City, cruising at a comfortable altitude which made sure his body was cooled just by the frigid high-altitude air. His back and shoulder boosters giving out 80% maximum thrust - his journey wasn't all that urgent, but he preferred to get to places quickly. Also, the box he was carrying in both hands was slowing him down - the box being horribly un-aerodynamic and all.

He was returning from Dr Kuseno's lab. He had been extensively damaged during the last fight against the Deep Sea King and required many repairs. He had also received a few upgrades and modifications - his internal computer was now running 7% faster, a new, more aggressive fighting style was now implemented to make the most advantage of his glass cannon-type design and his rocket boosters were now slightly more energy efficient, meaning that the cyborg could fly for longer and further.

And, most importantly, Genos could now safely play Pong while flying on autopilot.

In fact, Genos was doing just that. For the better part of his 10 minute journey, he had been battling the enemy pong paddle handler (himself) at an ever-increasing speed and the cyborg seemed to have no problem returning every shot. He found the challenge of high-speed Pong to be an effective way of honing his reaction speed and having something interesting to do.

So much of his attention was being diverted to trying to control both sides of the game that he didn't notice the ludicrously slow shower of shurikens he was flying into until he was right in front of them. Exiting out of the game immediately, Genos forced open several flaps on his arms and legs and fired all his arm and foot incineration cannons at the metal shards of death. His velocity slowed dramatically, but it wasn't enough to prevent him from being attacked by multiple shurikens. The blades in front of him had been disintegrated but surrounding shurikens seemed to be moving towards him, as if attracted to him. Dr Kuseno had assured the cyborg that he was built entirely out of non-magnetic alloys, but apparently that didn't stop the flying shurikens from gravitating towards him as if he was a piece of bread to pigeons. Genos threw himself into a steep dive, sending him rocketing into the forest canopy, just before the first spinning shuriken reached his metal body. It appeared that he had dodged a fatal bullet there, as the shuriken exploded with a fury as soon as it came close to the cyborg's body, the force of the explosion detonating the surrounding shurikens with a large-scale chain reaction.

But he wasn't safe yet. From out of nowhere, several kunai raced towards him, forcing him to swerve and roll sharply. Just as he thought he was in the clear, tiny little thrusters on the kunai burst into life, guiding the deadly little missiles towards the cyborg.

"It appears I'm under attack by a persistent foe," Genos thought as he raced through the forest canopy. "I must release my package in order to increase my maneuverability."

The cyborg let the box of canned drinks fall into the deep forest with a slight twinge of regret. He marked the location on his map to return to after the fight.

Now that his arms and hands were free to move, his maneuverability increased sharply. He quickly pulled himself into a hairpin-like turn, losing the kunai almost immediately as they slammed into a thick oak tree, the blast from the ensuing explosion severing the tree in half.

Genos landed on a tree branch, scanning his surroundings, but found no trace of the attacker. But he couldn't simply assume that the attacker had moved away. He had to remain vigilant to avoid being caught off-guard. He didn't want to end up like a piece of modern art again.

However, he didn't need to be vigilant to know that the enemy was nearby. Instead, a distorted voice floated through the dark forest canopy.

"I seem to have found myself a metal monkey…" the voice taunted.

Genos recognised the voice immediately. "Speed-o'-Sound Sonic. Stop bothering me. I have no time for a fight."

He knew that the ninja wouldn't be swayed by his words, but Genos hadn't spoken in vain. For some reason, Sonic's voice seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. Hopefully, by getting him to talk more, Genos could figure out how he was managing such a feat. Otherwise he would be in for a difficult fight. Also, Sonic's voice had a strange hollow quality to it.

"Oh. That's a shame," came the reply. The forest was silent once again.

Genos frowned. The ninja couldn't have possibly left, could he?

Suddenly, he felt movement in the air behind him. He quickly leaped into the air, attempting to dodge Sonic's katana blade. Unluckily for him, part of his foot was caught by the blade. Somehow, although his body was made of a seriously strong metal alloy, the ninja's blade dug into the heel of his foot just as the rockets there fired into action, tearing a chunk of his heel as well as part of the rocket nozzle away. The lack of a focusing nozzle caused Genos to spurt randomly in the air, colliding with numerous branches and finally into the floor before Genos could shut the rocket down.

He was given no time to gather himself, the ninja darting down at Genos, his sleek body pointed like a dart with a katana for the tip. The cyborg was barely able to avoid him, but he was forced on the defensive as the ninja came at him with a flurry of swings with his kunai, the katana stuck deep in the damp soil after the initial attack. Genos moved in a blur, twisting and turning in an effort to dodge the ninja's attacks. Thanks to his improved reaction speed, he was able to avoid most attacks, only suffering from a few minor cuts. But what worried him was that he had to focus entirely on defence. Sonic's speed had somehow grown by a major amount over the weeks, making Genos estimate him to be at least as fast as him, if not slightly faster.

With a final thrust which Genos narrowly dodged by jumping backwards, the ninja stopped his assault and stored his kunai up his sleeve. He regarded Genos with a cold stare.

"I must admit, your speed is admirable. I had thought that I could defeat you swiftly, but you're proving a worthy opponent."

The cyborg processed the compliment.

"You are also a strong foe. Your growth in ability shows that you have a large amount of potential for improvement. If not for your evil ways, you could be a strong force for good."

Sonic sneered.

"Are you telling me I could be a hero? And join the Hero Association?"

He huffed. "Why would I associate myself with that rabble?"

Genos shook his head. His eyes glinted dangerously.

"It is a shame that I will have to eliminate you."

With that, their little chat came to an end. Genos lunged forward, shoulder and back thrusters roaring with a crimson fury. A rocket-boosted punch crashed into the surprised ninja's face, sending him soaring into and through an oak tree as thick as he was tall behind him. Genos didn't let him rest - he relentlessly pursued the stunned ninja, grabbing his face and slamming him through several tree after tree, the ninja losing more and more consciousness until they reached a small rock formation, which Genos smashed the ninja into.

Behind him, a line of trees toppled over like dominoes.

Genos coughed smoke. That little attack had needed him to push his core all the way to 400% in the first few split seconds in order to catch Sonic unawares. It had worked, but not without a cost - his power core had reached extremely high temperatures and now needed at least an hour to cool down to its normal temperature. He wouldn't be able to do much fighting.

But judging by the state the ninja was in, smashed deep into granite with most of his bones broken, he wouldn't be bothering Genos any more.

The cyborg took a moment to let his actions sink in. He'd just smashed someone through tens of trees. Even with his aggressive fighting style, what he did seemed unusually brutal.

That was for the best though - if he'd been any gentler, the ninja would have just regenerated his injuries as they fought, and Genos wasn't sure if he could have won a war of attrition.

However, as Genos expected, Sonic was healing at an alarming rate; some of the ninja's limbs that were previously twisted in painful and unnatural positions were already back in their normal orientations. Genos knew that, if he allowed enough time, the ninja would be back with a vengeance. But that would have to be the case, as Genos couldn't muster enough strength to even fire an incineration at full blast, much less kill an enemy that had regenerative abilities almost on par with the Deep Sea King. The flight back would be a long one.

* * *

Holocho sighed. He was jogging on the labyrinth-like streets of Z City, on his usual monster patrol. He had been going at it for the whole morning now, and not even a trace of a monster was to be found. It was a stark reminder that being a hero wasn't always about fighting - sometimes they had boring days as well. And just like the past week, this was turning out to be a boring day.

What did lift his mood however was the amount of people who recognised him as he ran past. Every so often as he passed a pedestrian they would wave and shout a greeting to him, often accompanied by words of encouragement. It was really a change from the days where people had no idea who he was or what he was doing.

A smile grew on his face as he remembered the fan mail he had received last week after the fight with the Deep Sea King. A drone had landed, delivering with it a box packed full of letters from various fans, all thankful of the heroes' actions that day. Genos, of course, had received the most by far - more than three quarters of the hundred or so letters were in his name, showering him with praise and admiration for saving the refugees of the shelter from certain death, and for finally finishing off the demonic monster. He'd received many letters as well, mostly praising his skill, but a small number of his letters were critical of him. Why did he toy with the monster? He had so much power at his disposal, why didn't he use all of it to kill the Deep Sea King immediately?

And, of course, there was a hater. Probably someone who was swayed by the weasel of a man at the shelter or him himself. Filled with spite, the letter had tried to attack and demoralise Holocho in every way, telling him that he didn't deserve to be a hero, nor did he deserve to carry on living. That hadn't worked on Holocho of course, he was out here patrolling and continuing to carry out his hero duties, but the letter had really bruised his ego as well as stir up a hatred for that man. After reading that letter, the boy had torn it into microscopic shreds in a flash of burning anger, shocking Genos and Saitama.

Holocho cleared his head of the thought. Already, his vision was clouding over in anger, and he wasn't here to be angry, he was here to patrol and keep the citizens safe. His mood suddenly turned to one of a mixture of arrogance and happiness. What would they do without him? There were literally no capable heroes in the area. He shuddered at the thought of what would happen if even a low demon-level monster appeared in the area.

As he rounded a corner, a suspicious-looking man with a long brown trench coat and hat drew his eye. The man was trying to be inconspicuous, sitting on a bench and reading a book, but he swore that he'd seen him before, a couple of hours ago, trailing behind him. The boy decided to head directly to him.

He jogged over and sat on the bench beside the stalker.

"Whew! All that jogging's making me tired!" he said, despite being able to run another couple of marathons if he wanted to. He leaned towards the man. "That's an interesting book you got over there, what are you reading?"

The man was becoming visibly sweaty. Holocho continued. He twisted to peer directly at the man's face.

"Actually, I have a better question, what are you doing following me…?"

His voice trailed off as he realised who he was looking at.

He recoiled.

"Silverfang?!"

The old man sighed and removed his hat. "Yes. I am Silverfang."

Holocho broke into a grin. "So you were my stalker all along! You, the S class rank 3 hero was stalking me! I must be really important for you to waste your time following me around!"

Silverfang appeared to be in great discomfort.

"Well, tell me! Why're you stalking me?"

The old man sighed once again. "Well, I'll get right to the point. I wish for-"

Holocho held up a hand, cutting the old hero's sentence in half. He cocked his head, listening carefully for what he thought he'd heard. The sound was unmistakable. Genos's thrusters! He'd returned from his repairs! The boy jumped up eagerly. Genos had been away for some time now, having to undergo extensive repairs and all, so he wanted to welcome him back. He also wanted to see if the cyborg had any new gadgets.

"What? Where are you going?" Silverfang asked, watching the boy spring to his feet.

"I'm going home! Genos's back!" Holocho exclaimed. Seeing the slightly disheartened expression on the old man's face, he said enthusiastically, "You can come with me if you wanna!"

* * *

"It tastes disgusting…" Saitama said, grimacing.

"What does?" Holocho chimed.

"Huh? What?"

"Master, Holocho is standing in the balcony. He'd landed there just now."

"Oh," Saitama said, looking at the smiling boy as he let himself in. "Hello. Why's Silverfang with you?"

"Aha!" he said, grinning, and before the old man could say anything, Holocho chirped, "I caught the guy stalking me today!"

A moment of awkward silence. Saitama put down the canned drink he was holding.

"Are you sure that the S class rank 3 hero was stalking you?" Genos asked, narrowing his eyes. Silverfang was known to be a man of honour and integrity.

"Yeah! And he wasn't doing it well!" Holocho said. "I was on my patrol and kept seeing him from the corner of my eye! And he wasn't even trying to hide at all! It's like he wanted to be caught!"

Silverfang grumbled internally. This was all highly embarrassing. If only he'd been more subtle, then he could've avoided this mess. But now that he was in it, he'd better sort it out. But if only they'd let him speak!

Saitama frowned at the elderly man. "You may be S class, but you shouldn't be stalking kids, even if the kid's a hero. That's just wrong."

He gestured at the old hero's trenchcoat and hat. "And what you're wearing makes you look really suspicious. You can't blend in at all wearing that."

Silverfang closed his eyes in annoyance. Great. Now he was getting a lecture.

Before Saitama could continue, Silverfang smoothly cut in. "Let me end this misunderstanding. I admit that I may have been closely following Holocho, but I promise it wasn't for any… unsavoury reasons."

Holocho regarded him skeptically. "I don't believe you."

"Neither do I," Saitama said. He leaned close to Holocho. "Seems like Silverfang isn't as heroic as he seems," he whispered, causing Holocho to smirk.

"Yeah, if you didn't want to kidnap me, why did you try to hide yourself like that? Surely you could have just walked up to me and asked!"

"It's more than that-"

"And what you dressed up in really makes you look like a kiddie fi-"

Growling in frustration, he broke into Saitama's sentence, exclaiming, "Why do you all jump to the conclusion that I'm trying to kidnap him? Does my reputation as an S class hero not show anything?"

He was greeted by two pairs of skeptical eyes.

The old hero grumbled under his breath. "_Damn youngsters these days…"_

Genos, who had performed an extensive search on Silverfang as they talked, defended the exasperated hero, much to his relief.

"Master, Holocho, I have reason to believe that Silverfang has no bad intentions. Information from a detailed search on Silverfang I have just conducted points overwhelmingly to the fact that he is an honest and pure man. We should listen to what he has to say."

Silverfang nodded gratefully at the cyborg. "Thank you, Genos."

Holocho huffed. "Okay…"

"The reason I disguised myself was to avoid being swarmed by well wishers and admirers. As we all know, it's quite annoying sometimes," the elderly hero reasoned.

Genos nodded. "That is true, especially last week, after I defeated the Deep Sea King."

"And the reason why I didn't approach you immediately was because I wanted to observe you. To attempt to gauge your abilities and battlefield awareness."

"So not because you were looking for a chance to kidnap me."

"No. Nothing like that. When you had finished your hero duties, I wanted to ask if you could come to my dojo. I wish to demonstrate my martial arts to you in hopes of convincing you to join."

Seeing Holocho's frown, Silverfang added, "I am currently looking for new students. And although you are a powerful hero, I still see untouched potential in you I could help unlock if you studied under me."

"Hmm…"

Silverfang played his trump card. "I have an assortment of exotic foods in my dojo I could have prepared for you all for free."

Holocho perked up. "Sure!"

He turned to his companions excitedly. "Let's go!"

* * *

Reviews:

rmarcarno321: Thanks for your persistent support! I agree, Holocho does share quite a few characteristics with Goku. But he's less dumb, I hope.

abubakartheking2.0: Thank you. This fanfic will definitely continue.

iHateFridays: Thanks! I'm glad you like how I wrote Holocho. I try and give him a childish and carefree attitude, but also make him more unique than your usual kid protagonist.

I did have a small laugh when I gave Saitama his nickname of 'Flying Baldy' as well.


	19. Where Did That Come From?

"Fist of Flowing Water, Crushed Rock!"

Silverfang's hands were water, flowing around his body like a river, trailing blue wisps of light. He moved intricately, weaving a fluid net around his body, displaying his martial arts prowess and skill to the small audience before him.

Reactions varied from person to person. Charanko, Silverfang's disciple, was watching in pure wonder at his master's S class-level fighting ability. Holocho was looking on in interest, trying to figure out where the blue streaks of light were coming from. However, Genos and Saitama were bored.

The martial arts master finished his demonstration and reverted back to his usual slouched position, arms folded behind his back.

"It goes like that," he said, turning to the audience. "Well? Gonna give it a try? You all have good instincts. I'm sure you'll master it straight away."

Saitama frowned. "I thought you were going to show us something cool, gramps, not try and recruit us. Also, where's the food?"

Genos agreed. "Yes. Instead of self defence, I seek absolute destructive strength."

Charanko shot to his feet. "Do not insult the fist of Flowing Water, Crushed Rock! I am Charanko, Bang Sensei's best disciple-!"

Genos's grabbed and held the young man up in the air by the neck.

"Ugh! I give!" Charanko shouted painfully.

Genos let the disciple go and swiftly sat back down.

Holocho winced. "A bit uncalled for there, Genos!"

"He wished to challenge me, and I won in the fastest way possible. I see little wrong with my actions," Genos responded cooly.

"Still…" Holocho said, trailing off as he glanced at a still-recovering Charanko on the floor. "Bang, Charanko said he was your strongest disciple. Is that really true?"

The sensei, who had been observing them, answered in a dark voice. "Well… there is one who stands unchecked. He has incapicated so many talented disciples that all the others quit in fear."

Holocho and Saitama stood, their interest piqued.

"What was his name?" Holocho asked.

"Was he strong?" Saitama added.

Silverfang turned away from them. "His name is Garo. He was once my finest disciple… but I beat him up and drove him out."

Holocho grinned. "Nice going, Bang!"

Charanko shot back to his feet, raising his fist in fury. "Haven't you heard of the hero named Silverfang?!"

He drew in a deep breath. "Class S! Rank 3! Silverfang! With moves like flowing water, toys with his opponents! He is the master of martial arts-"

Holocho smacked him gently with a shockwave, sending the over-enthusiastic disciple spinning. "I'm not trying to insult you, Bang, but that was annoying."

Charanko shook his head to clear himself of the dizziness. His face was now red with anger. "What do you think you're doing? You may be class A, but that doesn't mean you're strong-"

"Charanko! Do not disgrace me!" Bang's voice thundered. "Holocho is much stronger than I! Do you wish to get beaten down again?!"

Charanko's bluster disappeared. "M-master… Surely you're kidding…"

Holocho smirked, lowering fists that were about to pummel Charanko into a pulp.

"Hey, Bang… does your technique help you fight against someone who has… overwhelming strength?" Holocho asked, glancing at Saitama.

Silverfang frowned. "Yes. The fist of Flowing Water Crushed Rock is effective in defence and countering attacks. With enough practice, a common man could deflect a blow from even Tank Top Master."

He leaned in close, lowering his voice. "I see why you want to learn it."

The boy grinned. "So I put my hands like this…"

Under Bang's guidance, Holocho spent the next five minutes trying to match the martial arts master's technique stance by stance, much to the boredom of Genos and Saitama.

"Flowing River Crushed Rock!" Holocho and Bang shouted. They moved in synchrony, Holocho mirroring Bang's movements almost perfectly.

However, something was missing.

"Bang, why don't I have that blue light when I wave my hands around?"

"You do not simply 'wave your hands around'. What you are learning is a highly refined martial arts technique, your hands are precision tools that strike like the claws of a praying mantis. The light you see is a result from many years of practice of channelling one's inner energy through your hands."

"Oh! So like this…?"

Holocho crouched down, holding his clenched fists in front of him. He closed his eyes, concentrating hard.

Bang's eyes widened. "Is he going to…?"

He relaxed. Holocho's stance just made him look constipated.

As Holocho gave up, Charanko let out a slow breath. He was getting worried that the boy was actually going to master the technique within merely five minutes, but it seemed like he lacked the sharp concentration that was required to fully utilise it.

"Dammit!" Holocho groaned. "It's a bit harder than I thought."

Bang chuckled. "You'll need a little more than just five minutes to be able to use my martial arts technique."

"Well, too bad." Holocho perked up. "What about that food you promised us?"

"Well…" said the old hero. "I-"

"Sensei! I will get it immediately!" Charanko shouted eagerly, springing to his feet and running out the room.

Saitama smiled in anticipation and rubbed his gloved hands together. "Finally, what I came here for. It's the right time as well."

Charanko came barrelling back into the main hall of the dojo. He was holding a large assortment of meat and vegetables.

"The food, sensei!"

"Huh? I thought you'd prepared some dishes?"

Bang started to sweat nervously. "Not quite…"

"Wait, so you said that just to get us to come here?"

"..."

The atmosphere instantly grew frigid. Holocho groaned audibly.

Genos loomed menacingly over Silverfang. "We trusted you. But now you've crossed a forbidden line."

He started to glow orange. "You have lied to master. For that, you deserve to be punished."

Charanko darted in front of his master. Crossing his arms, he retorted, "Sensei didn't lie to anyone. You were just foolish enough to believe what hasn't been said!"

Genos and Charanko stared at each other, daring one another to make a move.

Saitama's disappointed face turned into one of sheepishness. "Genos! Don't blast him!"

The cyborg powered down his whirring incineration cannon and turned to face his master.

"Master, are you sure?"

Holocho laughed and face-palmed. "Sly old Bang just said he had food here! He's not lying at all!"

The tension dissolved as they realised their foolishness.

Bang let out a sigh of relief. They had come close to an all-out fight he wasn't sure he could win. But now that his dojo had been saved from destruction, he had to work out how to make amends.

But before he could start apologising, he was interrupted by a yell.

"Silverfang! I'm from the Hero association! There's an emergency summons of S class heroes! Please! You must come to headquarters!"

The source of the shouting was a dishevelled young man in a black suit. He was leaning heavily against the door frame, out of breath from his long climb up the stairs to Bang's dojo.

"Oh! Genos is here! You're S class, so you should come too!"

The S class heroes strode towards the door, much to the appreciation of the exhausted lackey.

"Should we come too?" Holocho asked, gesturing to himself and Saitama.

"Yes. We may need your power," Genos replied.

"Charanko, watch the dojo for me," Bang said.

"Be careful!"

* * *

"What do you mean I can't go in!?" Holocho asked adamantly.

"What do you mean, what do you mean? Isn't it obvious!?"

Holocho was standing in the doorway of the Hero Association headquarters in City A. Floating in front of him was a small woman, arms crossed against her chest. For some reason, she wasn't letting him enter the headquarters.

"What?!"

"Listen, kid! I won't let a bunch of A class losers stroll in here just because they're invited! One's already too much, you're lucky I'm not crushing you against the ceiling!"

Saitama frowned. He'd entered the building with the S class heroes without much hassle, but once Holocho stepped through the door, the floating lady showed up and started spewing sass.

"So you better stay outside or I'll make sure you're never a hero again! Get lost, under-grown brat! Shorty! Imp!"

Holocho felt like smoke was coming out of his ears. "But- what-?"

Silverfang sighed. "It's better if you stay outside, Holocho. We don't want a fight breaking out inside the headquarters."

"Are you serious? Who even is she? A lost child?"

"She is Tatsumaki, an esper," Genos said.

"Oh, that one!" Holocho said, remembering Genos showing her to them some weeks back.

"I'm not a thing!" Tatsumaki said, her sharp voice cutting into Holocho's ears. "You heard the old man, piss off! Shoo!"

Holocho huffed. "Fine. But when I get to S class rank 1, I'll tell you what to do!"

He disappeared from view before Tatsumaki could respond.

"Almost everyone has gathered. Let's go and sit." Genos stated as soon as the shenanigans were over.

"She's so sassy…" Saitama thought.

* * *

Holocho was bored. He'd been waiting for ages, long enough for him to miss his 3DS. Now, with nothing to do, he was lying on his back on the roof of the Hero Association headquarters with nothing to do.

"What are they doing in there?" he thought, his mind wandering. "Maybe there's a party going on. Or they're getting told off for being so lazy. I know! They're in trouble for… spending too much money on food!"

His stomach rumbled at the thought of a bowl or two of freshly prepared ramen.

"What I'd do for something to eat… If only that old guy hadn't tricked us…"

He was jerked from his daydreaming by a series of explosions nearby.

"Woah! Flying hippies!"

Bursts of energy were shooting out of several monsters' mouths, exploding against the tough metal of the headquarters.

With a few well-placed wave punches, the attackers were no more. Holocho sat back down, but before he could lie down again, he was plunged into shadow.

Holocho rubbed his eyes, but the darkness didn't go away. Then he noticed the massive spaceship that was looming above him.

"When did that thing get here?"

It was a truly humongous spacecraft. Deep purple in colour, it dwarfed everything in view, the jagged and crude hull stretching out as far as he could see. The spacecraft just seemed to hang effortlessly in the air, how it did so Holocho could not even begin to comprehend.

As Holocho gawked at the spaceship, mouth hanging open, he noticed several flashing pinpricks of light flashing on the underside of the hull and little bullet-shaped objects falling from such points of light.

His mouth grew dry as he realised the little bullet-like objects weren't small at all, and they were all falling towards the city below with increasing speed. Holocho burst into action, shooting to his feet. The bullet-like objects were getting quite close now, and he only had a few seconds to prevent them from impacting the city.

"Craaaap!" Holocho cried. The world around him slowed to a crawl, his arms becoming blurs. He sent shockwaves after shockwaves at the incoming shells as fast as he could, his brain working as fast as it could to locate targets. The area around him lit up with explosions, the closest of the shells detonating as soon as a shockwave penetrated them.

It wasn't going to be enough. Holocho could see that the wave of shells was going to overwhelm his frantic defence.

Then an idea sprang into his mind. If the shells detonated as soon as they were penetrated, perhaps he didn't need such a wide and powerful shockwave for each shell. If so, he could reduce the force behind each of his wave punches and increase the frequency of them instead.

He quickly switched from full-on wave punches to weaker jabs with his finger, increasing his speed tenfold. His idea worked perfectly, demolishing the shells in front of him before they were even halfway to the ground.

"Now for the rest of them…"

With a flurry of wave punches, the other shells were disposed of before they could do any significant damage. However, a few shells came a little too close, the shockwave from their explosions shattering glass and rocking a few buildings. But City A had been saved, at least for now.

Holocho let out a long sigh of relief. He'd worked up a small sweat, but destroying the debris from the giant meteor a few weeks ago had been quite a bit harder, probably because it was closer down when it blew up. Also, Holocho had become at least a bit stronger since then as well.

Unfortunately for him, the spacecraft also seemed to notice the flaws in its attack and began lowering in altitude. Another series of flashes signified more shells on their way down, but this time they seemed… angled.

Holocho grumbled. It looked like the barrage was heading right towards him. Whoever was driving this ship was annoying.

With another volley of narrowed wave punches (or jabs), the shells had been destroyed. It had been easier this time, the shells being lined up in nice columns for him to shoot down.

"What's happening?"

Saitama had burst through the roof during the spaceship's last attack and had been sitting behind Holocho, watching him play Space Invaders with the incoming shells.

"Baldy! Didn't notice you there! I've been saving everyone's lives! What about you?"

"Where'd that thing come from?" Saitama said, deciding to ignore Holocho's friendly jab.

"No idea, it just appeared."

"Okay."

Saitama walked to the edge of the rooftop.

"Where are you going?"

Saitama pointed at the spaceship.

"There."

Before Holocho could say anything, he leapt into the air, heading into the spaceship like an arrow, batting away shells that fired at him in response.

"That's annoying… He left me behind…"

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck stood. Something menacing was behind him.

But Holocho didn't really care. The chances of it actually being able to harm him were next to none. And he was right. A large lumpy hammer struck the side of his head with no effect. It was more like a love tap than anything.

"What's this?" a distorted voice said. "A life form resistant to our attack?"

Holocho turned and uppercut the alien, sending it hurtling high into the air.

"Shoo. I'm busy."

The boy turned back to face the giant spaceship.

"Wait up, baldy!"

* * *

A/N: Damn, things are hectic for me right now. This chapter will have to be a normal length one, but I promise an extended chapter will be coming out next. The big fight's coming up.

* * *

Reviews:

Guest: Yeah lol, Silverfang can be a sly one sometimes.

rmarcano321: Yeah, I've finished all the OPM anime including season 2. Can't wait for season 3 especially now that I've read all the manga.

iHateFridays: Indeed, the big battle will start! Sorry if you thought it would be in this chapter, but I really haven't had the time...


	20. A Brewing Storm

Holocho scratched his head. Gazing up at the ginormous spaceship above, he wondered if he could be bothered to follow Saitama up there. If he did, he would have the enormous task of trying to clear out the whole kilometers-long flying object. It would really be a chore.

His stomach suddenly dropped as he realised that, if Saitama destroyed all the aliens inside the ship, he would most certainly rise above him in rank. He could not let that happen. If Saitama destroyed enough aliens, he could even rise to S class before him.

Gritting his teeth, he prepared himself for the momentous task ahead. However, as he was about to jump, he remembered something he was thinking about as he was idling on the rooftop during the S class meeting. A new technique - one that possibly enabled him to fly.

"So… maybe if I move my legs up and down real fast, like treading water…"

He jumped into the air, frantically kicking at the air as if treading water. To his great surprise, he rocketed up, far above the spaceship before he realised he was overdoing it. He let out a small yelp of surprise but quickly calmed down as he took in the breathtaking view of the land below. The behemoth of a ship seemed rather insignificant compared to the boundless earth and its oceans.

Or perhaps his breath was being taken away because of the lack of air kilometers above ground.

The air around him started to grow even colder. Thanks to his hero costume, the well-made insulation shielded against extreme temperatures, protecting him from the worst of the chill, but now the cold began to seep through, causing a small shiver to run through him. But ears felt as if they were about to fall off, the costume offered no protection whatsoever to his head.

Above him, as the sky darkened to a deep sapphire, a spectacular view of space opened up before his eyes. His breath was taken away for real - the countless myriads of stars he saw with a startling clarity inducing a certain feeling of insignificance. He was a mere speck amongst trillions and trillions. He wondered where from between the stars the invaders had come - the possibilities were endless. Maybe there are others like them wherever they come from, ready to commence an invasion on his planet. Or maybe they were a group of alien refugees fleeing from a menace, only for miscommunication to lead them to attacking earth.

He briefly wondered how the S class heroes were doing down below. The alien ship had probably started trying to bombard the city again. Hopefully the heroes were thwarting their efforts. He had confidence that they were, they weren't S class heroes for nothing.

As Holocho rose higher and higher, the boy suddenly realised it was getting hard to breathe properly. A sudden realisation struck him. If it was getting hard to breathe… that meant there wasn't much air. If there wasn't enough air, he'd be unable to wave punch! He'd be stuck up here!

Holocho briefly tried to re-orientate himself by swimming in the air, failing miserably. He folded his arms and legs into a meditative pose and huffed. He'd better find a way to stop his ascent or he'd soon be spaced, and that would be a really lame way to die. As he thought over how to return back down, his mental cogs started to turn.

"If I can do a gentle enough wave punch, one of those bigger sorts… maybe I can push myself around…?"

He unfolded himself, standing up in the air. With a soft push, just hard enough to create a shockwave, he sent himself spinning slowly backwards. A wide grin spread across the boy's face. With another gentle wave punch, he re-orientated himself so that his head was pointing down towards earth.

He smiled mischievously. He wasn't going to let the baldy steal all his glory.

* * *

The baldy was feeling extremely confused. Everywhere he went looked the same - same colour walls, same everything. He was beginning to think that he was seeing the same dead aliens splattered against the wall. Maybe only choosing the right path was... wrong? He decided to ask the next alien he came across to take him to their leader instead of immediately killing them, but it wasn't entirely his fault. they kept on attacking him!

"Hello? Anyone there?" Saitama asked, pounding against a random door he happened to notice.

There was no response.

Saitama gave the door a little tug. "Why is everything here locked- whoops."

He'd accidentally pulled the door off. "Huh. Flimsy."

He discarded the door and peered inside the gaping hole he'd made. The room was empty, the aliens previously inside long gone.

"Hey! You!"

Saitama frowned. Where'd that sound come from?

"You! The hairless one!"

The hairless one cast around angrily. "Who said that?"

He knocked the side of his head with his knuckles. "Why does it sound like you're inside my head?"

"It's telepathy, idiot! I'm a psychic!"

"Cool… Who are you?"

"It doesn't matter! Turn back or die! If you don't retreat, I'll kill you with everything I have! Go any further and you're dead!"

Saitama's demeanour instantly changed into confusion. "Retreat? I'm lost! Where's the exit!"

"That's right! You have no idea where you are! I'll guide you to the exit," the voice said, sounding relieved.

However, the voice fell silent. A dull crash sounded in the distance, accompanied by a jarring shudder.

"Hello? Aren't you going to guide me to the exit?" Saitama asked the empty air.

There was no response. Saitama suddenly felt stupid for trying to talk to empty air.

"Maybe I was hearing voices," he thought to himself, trying to piece things together. "Or… that sound was Holocho…?"

The bald hero scratched his chin. "Might as well check it out, I'm lost anyway."

* * *

Holocho stood, dusting himself off. His little fall from the sky had sent him burrowing through the ship far faster than he'd expected, resulting in him crashing through several decks of the giant spaceship. Thankfully he'd managed to penetrate through the ship... Who knows what sort of damage would have occurred if he'd accidentally knocked the giant spaceship onto City A. Now, however he had no idea where he was, but he supposed that he wouldn't have had any idea where he was if he'd landed anywhere else anyway. Casting around, he could see a number of lit displays showing various diagrams. Maybe he was in a sort of control room.

A viscous black substance dripped off his hand onto the floor.

"Huh? What's this?" Holocho thought, raising his hand closer to his eye. The gloved hand was covered in a thick slimy liquid.

"Ugh! I'm covered in it!"

Holocho's eyes widened in disgust at the slime covering his body. "What is this stuff?!"

He noticed the splattered carcass of a dark blue octopus-like alien under his feet illuminated by the light shining through the hole he'd made in the ceiling. The same slimy goo was pooling out from under it.

"Ohhh nooooo…"

He heard a small whimper to his side. Turning, he saw a small alien cowering against the wall. Apparently the shockwave of his impact when he landed hadn't killed them all.

"Hey! Holocho!" Saitama called, entering through the door of the room Holocho had landed in. He took a look at the goo-drenched Holocho and immediately backed away.

"Hey! Why're you running away?" said Holocho.

Saitama shook his head and pointed a disgusted finger at the growing pool of blood under Holocho's feet.

"That's blood, and I don't want that on my suit! It's really hard to wash off!"

"Wait, it's blood? Not brain fluid or something?" the boy asked.

"Of course it's blood! What sort of alien has dark blue brains?"

Holocho perked up at the fact he wasn't drenched in brains, but his shoulders quickly slumped. "Aww man… my costume's ruined now!"

He jumped up and down, trying to shake off as much blood as he could before it dried and stuck to his hero costume. Cracks appeared under his feet, the combination of his rough landing in the room and now his frantic jumping damaging the deck.

"Hey!" Saitama yelled, trying fruitlessly to avoid the shower of blood Holocho stirred up. Blood rained down on him, decorating his bright yellow costume with specks of dark blue blood. He hastily tried to rub the blood off, but that just resulted in him smearing the blood all over his costume.

"Now my costume's bloody as well!" he said angrily, shaking a fist at Holocho.

"Haha, you look like a dalmatian!" Holocho said, laughing. "Saitama the bald dalmatian!"

Saitama groaned. "Let's just go find that boss guy."

He walked over to the lone cowering alien and loomed over it. "Hey, you. Tell me where your boss is."

The alien shrank back, fear evident in its green face.

Saitama's face darkened.

"G-g-go straight a-ahead, then t-turn l-l-l-left!" the alien squealed, now completely pale.

Saitama frowned. "Is that it?"

The reptilian alien nodded as if its life depended on it. It did.

Saitama gestured halfheartedly at Holocho, who was still trying to get rid of the dark blue blood on his black costume. "Let's go kill this boss guy. It's getting kinda boring in here."

* * *

S class heroes. The top of the top. The pride of the Hero Association. Each one mighty enough to withstand and defeat a Demon level threat or more. Even they were gaping at the giant alien warship hovering above City A. Even though they were standing on the tallest building in the city, they felt a sense of insignificance - they seemed like mere ants compared to such a large space ship. What overwhelmed them was the fact that an alien species had actually managed to build such a large city-sized object and had managed to make it fly like that - how technologically advanced were they to manage that feat?

Genos, however, was unfazed. Instead of letting the sheer size of the warship bother him, he was searching for any sign of his Master or Holocho. They were nowhere to be seen. The cyborg could only assume they had boarded the spaceship somehow. Now that he was looking carefully, he could just make out a small hole in the side of the alien craft.

"That must be where one of them entered through." Genos reasoned. "But that hole's too small for both of them. Did they enter one at a time? That would be ridiculous."

Suddenly, a searingly bright streak of fire raced from the heavens, colliding ferociously with the spaceship, sending vast waves of pressure flying into the air. The heroes crouched down, bracing against the fierce wind that rocked the building.

"What was that?!" Atomic Samurai exclaimed.

"A high-velocity projectile just attacked the space craft!" Child Emperor shouted.

"Was it Metal Knight?" Sitch asked, emerging from the floor below, grunting at the strain of pulling himself up.

"No, he doesn't use pure kinetic projectiles like that one, he uses missiles that explode on contact," Child Emperor said, pulling up a replay of the 'projectile'. "You see? That thing went straight through the surface of the ship. It probably penetrated through multiple layers of the ship."

Genos allowed himself a small smile. He knew it wasn't an ordinary projectile but actually Master or Holocho making a tactical entrance. Perhaps Master was giving a visual demonstration of his power.

Unfortunately, Genos was given no time to ponder what his Master was doing for a new threat reared its ugly head.

A new alien burst into view, soaring into view from above, its formidable stature and broad wings casting a dark shadow over the gathered heroes. Numerous heroes gave small gasps of disgust and surprise at its deformed shape - instead of a single head, this dark skin-coloured being had multiple heads jutting out at various angles that seemed to meld together at the neck. From its menacing size and confidence, Genos could tell that this alien was more powerful than your average monster.

"There… are… more lifeforms?" a head said lethargically.

"Yes… more… un-weak lifeforms…" a head facing the heroes intoned.

"That is good… a suitable test of power…"

The abomination pulled into a steep dive, soaring towards the gathered heroes. As they were S class heroes, the best of the best, each of them sprang into a fighting position, unfazed by the looming threat. The King Engine roared to life. Before the alien had a chance to act, it was shredded and pummelled into a pulp. By the time the heroes were finished, there was no trace of the alien left.

"That was pathetic!" Tatsumaki said arrogantly. "Good riddance! Such an ugly alien doesn't deserve to live!"

Bang hmed with thought. "It's almost as if the monster wanted to die. I wonder why it charged at us so suicidally?"

* * *

"Lifeforms… stronger than… expected…"

"That is not good… must inform ship…"

The alien was standing in a dark doorway facing the Hero Association headquarters. Its body had been beaten to a pulp, but it hadn't been anywhere near enough to kill it. After being defeated, its particles had been scattered into the wind, but a small chunk had managed to find its way to the doorway. The alien was now slowly regenerating, planning its next move.

"I'll go," a head said, detaching itself from its main body, trails of goo dripping from it. A pair of small bat-like wings sprouted from its sides.

"That is good… we will distract…"

The monster's multiple heads melded together, its body reshaping like play-dough. Within a few seconds, the alien's body had completed its transformation. Instead of multiple heads, it had a single elongated head. Rows of eyes were stacked on top of each other. The alien grinned, revealing layers of little blunt teeth.

"What are we going to do about that giant spaceship?" Puri Puri Prisoner asked, gazing at the ominous purple dreadnought.

"Well, apart from sending that one soldier down to attack us, it hasn't done anything wrong. We should send an ambassador on board and hear what they want," Child Emperor said. "It's too big to take down anyway. Maybe Metal Knight could, but he's not responding to us."

"Well, this is boring. This isn't a God level threat. You called me away from my little sister's piano recital for nothing!" Metal Bat said, frustrated. "I'm leaving."

"Wait!" Sitch called. "Could you just stay a while longer, just in case?"

Metal Bat harrumphed. "Fine. One more minute!"

Suddenly, a gust of wind assailed the heroes. The alien had returned.

"Again? I thought we killed this guy?" Atomic Samurai said.

The alien grinned arrogantly. "Nowhere near! But carry on! Resist our invasion!"

One of its arms morphed into a giant mallet. "Entertain me!"

Immediately, the cocky alien was assaulted by many of the more eager heroes. Genos fired incineration blasts, Metal Bat and Atomic Samurai swung their weapons and Puri Puri Prisoner and Superalloy Darkshine pummelled the alien with their fists.

However, as strong the S class heroes were, they weren't the best at working together, mostly because they'd never done so before.

"Genos! Be careful! You almost burnt my hair!" Metal Bat shouted.

"I apologise-"

"Get out the way, Puri Puri Prisoner! Stop pushing me!" Atomic Samurai yelled, trying to swing his katana amidst the chaos.

"It's not my fault your blade is so long," Puri Puri Prisoner replied suggestively.

Atomic Samurai growled. "Why does everything have to be so weird with you?"

"I'm sorry, but-"

"Shut up and just fight!" Metal Bat yelled, swinging his bat like there was no tomorrow.

Bang sighed. Watching the S class heroes was like watching a bunch of 10-year-olds. Even though they were the best of the best, they were so childish to each other. A month or two at his dojo would certainly fix that, teach them some discipline. He sighed. However, as powerful as they were, they weren't doing anything to kill the alien they were simultaneously attacking. All the damage they inflicted was being regenerated instants after, the slimy play-dough-like substance the alien was made of seemed to just meld right back into shape. Bang's eyes widened slightly as he realised it was only a matter of time before the heroes were caught off-guard and hit. And judging by the damage done to the rooftop, the alien hit like a battering ram.

"I'm bored. I'm leaving." Tatsumaki tossed her head arrogantly, a green glow surrounding her body. She rose into the air.

A sudden aggressive swing sent the S class heroes flying. The alien stood as it reformed its body, It grinned malevolently, pointing a finger to the sky. "It's too late. The ship will concentrate fire on us."

A series of gasps filled the brief silence.

"Artillery! The ship's firing at us!"

The glow around Tatsumaki intensified. Concentrating her power through a hand held out in front of her, she effortlessly stopped the shells in their paths, the same green glow surrounding the shells that were moments away from impacting the city.

The heroes cast around, bewildered. "What happened?"

Tatsumaki huffed. "You're all hopeless without me! It takes this long to beat one small fry? You should start over in class C!"

She flicked her finger up. The shells turned 180 degrees, pointing at the giant alien spaceship.

"I'm returning these shells!" Tatsumaki exclaimed. In unison, the artillery shells that came so close to wiping out City A were zipping back to their sender. A moment later, numerous explosions blossomed out on the underside of the ship, their intensity showing how close City A was to sheer destruction.

* * *

Saitama and Holocho ran down a long, gleaming hallway. It seemed quite different from the rest of the ship - instead of crude, organic-like architecture, this hallway seemed more refined. Quickly approaching them was a gigantic door, made of the same purple metal as the rest of the ship, only it was significantly more polished. Holocho grinned and leapt forward, propelling him towards the door at amazing speeds and leaving Saitama in the dust, the shockwaves created from the force of his jump denting the floor. With a thunderous punch, the door was blown from its hinges, opening up to a vast chamber.

The chamber was better described as a throne room. Made up of the same purplish material as the rest of the ship, most of the room was empty save for a set of steps leading up to a raised platform. Rows of grand purple columns lined the sides of the hall. An imposing figure adorned with an ornate set of golden armour and purple spiky hair sat expressionlessly on a grand, gleaming throne in the centre of the raised platform. Above him, a large glowing purple orb shone with a startling light, illuminating the chamber with an ominous hue.

"Hello! Are you the leaders of the invaders?" Holocho asked eagerly, waving a hand at the seated alien.

The alien stood, maintaining his calculating one-eyed stare as it strode towards the duo. The air crackled with tension until the alien finally spoke. "Yes. I am the ruler of the aliens who you have killed so mercilessly."

Holocho shifted. "Well, you did try and destroy City A."

"And yet your 'City A' is still standing."

The alien smiled a mad smile. "You dealt with it most splendidly!"

"I think something's wrong with this guy," Saitama whispered, to which Holocho nodded subtly.

"I am perfectly fine, thank you. You may have prevented the destruction of your city, but now that you aren't there to protect it… "

Saitama and Holocho exchanged a worried glance.

The alien leapt down, landing right in front of the two heroes, dwarfing them with his size.

"Which one of you shall I fight first?"

Saitama and Holocho looked at each other. Saitama shrugged. Holocho broke out in a grin.

"Before we fight, let me know your name. I lead a band of thieves known as Dark Matter. I am Lord Boros, dominator of the universe!"

"That's pretty cool! I'm a pro hero, Brutal Tempest! I am going to kill you."

"Good, straight to the point," Boros commended. "But you know what I want?"  
Holocho frowned.

"There was a prophecy-"

A deafening chorus of explosions rocked the ship. Holocho's eyes widened. "You…"

Boros chuckled. "Your city is no more."

Holocho took a series of deep breaths, composing himself. With a sudden explosive shout, he launched himself at the alien, his fist barrelling into his stomach. Boros flew backwards, spitting blood. He crashed deep into a column. His armour sparked, cracks spidering across as he struggled to rise out of the wreckage.

"You're not dead?"

The armour finally gave away, bursting into pieces in a bright flash, exposing Boros's light blue skin. Dark blue lines ran along his arms and body, converging at a gleaming crimson orb in his chest.

"My armour… that holds in my overwhelming power… has been broken."

"Huh?"

"My armour was restraining my immeasurable, unrivalled power."

"Ah, yes…"

"Now, behold, my true power!"

Boros crouched down, crossing his arms in front of his head. With a grunt, the extraterrestrial unleashed a power he hadn't tasted in 20 years. His body convulsed, the dark blue streaks on his body glowing bright purple. His spine burst outwards, spikes growing on each bone, bringing forth dark blue skin that spread over his body.

The now dark blue alien grinned devilishly behind his crossed arms. He'd finished his transformation, now to give them a taste of his unleashed power. The Dominator of the Universe released his pent-up power, the jagged blue lines running across his body flashing purple. His energy pushed its way out of his body, bursting into a jagged purple aura coupled with high-velocity winds. Several blades of purple lightning danced around Boros's crouched figure, flashing irregularly, making Holocho feel as if he were in a nightclub. Not that he would really know how it would be inside one, of course.

The boy frowned. This opponent could be a cut above your average guy. He moved into a fighting stance, one similar to Bang's.

The light show stopped. Boros was done revelling in his long-untouched power. He was now ready for a fight like none other. One that finally stirred his spirit.

"It's time!"

* * *

The final showdown is about to happen. Holocho vs Boros.

Damn, this has been my longest chapter yet.

* * *

Reviews:

iHateFridays: Thanks, I enjoyed writing that as well! I hope you don't mind the lack of a big battle… It will take up the entirety of the next chapter.

Starlord Master: Thanks for the continued support!


	21. S for Supremacy

"It's time!" Boros said, his jagged purple aura fading. Instantly, he was greeted by a flying kick to the face, knocking him sprawling backwards. He quickly regained balance, wiping blood off his face, but was given no rest as Holocho assailed him with a flurry of punches. The boy's fists fell upon him, Boros barely managing to keep up. With an unexpected grab at the alien's wrist, Holocho swung him around his head, building up momentum and speed until Boros was just a blue blur above his head. He flung the dizzy alien at a nearby column, shattering it completely.

Holocho smirked. "Not very impressive, Dominator of the Universe. Get up, I want to teach you a lesson for what you did."

Boros rose from the debris, a wild expression on his face. "That actually hurt. This fight may be a good warm-up."

"Me? Warm up?" Holocho said. He moved back into his fighting stance, one that closely mirrored Bang's. "I'll make you cry."

Boros chuckled. "Your attitude is refreshing. People would usually be crying if a city was just destroyed."

Boros leapt forward over the ruined column, his fist crashing into Holocho's guard, sending him skidding back.

Holocho barked out a laugh. "Weak."

Boros merely grinned. With another leap and punch, Boros knocked the boy's defence above his head, exposing his stomach. Boros took full advantage of this, ramming home a powerful uppercut, sending Holocho flying into the air. The cyclops followed him into the air, a purple streak appearing behind him as he closed the distance between him and the boy. Holocho's eyes widened, narrowly managing to twist in mid air to avoid the alien's attack. Boros wasn't deterred, arching back towards him. Once again, and again and again, Holocho twisted and turned in the air, dodging the cyclop's attacks. The purple streak behind the alien traced a glowing flower in the air, with Holocho at the centre.

Despite literally being able to do this all day, Holocho decided to mix things up a bit. Just before Boros entered striking distance, his legs moved in a blur, propelling him away from the purple alien at ludicrous speeds.

Boros's smile widened. He increased his speed, pursuing after Holocho.

Holocho grinned wildly. Not because there was a mad alien chasing behind him, but because he was managing to fly! He veered about in the air, just managing to avoid crashing into columns and walls, but with his new technique he was able to unlock a new plane for combat - the air.

Also, he could finally reach those damned mosquitoes.

The two fighters weaved about in the air, Boros hot on Holocho's heels. They twisted and span amongst the vast columns lining the hall, Holocho's erratic flying being one of the only reasons Boros hadn't caught up to him and beat him down. Not that Holocho was flying like a drunkard on purpose - he was still learning the ropes to flying.

The boy's luck finally ran out. He looked behind him, trying to catch a glimpse of his pursuer, but was caught off-guard by a sudden flash of purple light. Blinded, he crashed into a column. Boros seized the opportunity and rushed in, slamming Holocho into and through the floor.

For the second time in this short day, Holocho ploughed through the ship, but this time he had a crazy alien pushing him down.

When they finally exited the bottom of the gargantuan spaceship, exploding through the hull, Holocho breathed a sigh of relief. It hadn't hurt much, but being pushed through multiple decks hadn't been a pleasant experience.

However, the alien was still pushing him towards the ground, rapidly increasing their plummet in the open air. With an explosive collision, Holocho was buried deep in the ground.

Holocho jumped out of the crater, landing with a crouch. Behind him, he heard a deep chuckle.

"Brutal Tempest. Even after so much, you are still unscathed. You really are something else."

Holocho turned and crossed his arms, staring up at the tall alien. "That wasn't anything at all. If that's what you call a fight, you're really nothing. Also I notice City A is still here."

Boros smiled deeply. "It seems as if your planet has more capable warriors. Perhaps I will face them next after your defeat."

Holocho glared at him. He wordlessly moved back into a fighting stance.

"You have nothing to say? No witty remark?" Boros asked arrogantly. "Perhaps you are taking this more seriously now? Perhaps you've realised how much I've been holding back…?"

"Shut up!" Holocho shouted, firing off a wave punch. The shockwave struck Boros square in the jaw, knocking it sideways with a wet crunch. The alien stared at Holocho with a wide, unsettling eye, grinning as his jaw regenerated.

"This will be fun."

Holocho sighed in frustration. Regenerating enemies are always a pain in the ass. He supposed that he would just have to overwhelm him so he gets no chance to recover. But judging by the speed of the alien's regeneration, he may finally have an interesting fight on his hands.

* * *

"Just hitting it over and over won't kill it! It just regenerates!" Sitch shouted. The battle on the roof of the Hero Association was still in full swing, the S Class heroes brutally pummelling Melzargard with everything they had. By now, they'd worked out a haphazard plan of attack - Puri Puri Prisoner and Metal Bat being the up-front bruisers, keeping the alien occupied while Atomic Samurai exploited any openings. Many other heroes, including Child Emperor and Tatsumaki had left, out of either boredom or because they had better things to do.

"I know! But do you have a better plan?" Atomic Samurai shouted back, dodging a wild swing. Because of their skill, or luck, nobody had been hurt so far, but the rooftop was littered with craters and scars from the alien's missed punches.

Genos had been standing at the side of the roof, a spectator to the combat, watching with his searching amber eyes. He saw no solution to the heroes' problem - this fight was far different from his battle with the Deep Sea King. Although he'd faced the same problems of the enemy regenerating faster than he could inflict damage, it had been solved with a 'simple' decapitation. The Deep Sea King still tried to regenerate, somehow still surviving just as a head, but his regeneration was too slow to stop him from blasting the monster to oblivion. This alien, however, survived even the most grievous wounds, regenerating from them almost instantly. At this rate the heroes would just tire and eventually make a fatal mistake.

Genos did notice a pattern - with his sharp cybernetic eyesight, he could notice the alien always regenerating around a small black orb. Perhaps that was the secret to defeating the alien.

But he was jerked away from his thoughts by the sight and sound of something crashing into the ground at high speeds in a nearby park.

* * *

Holocho blitzed towards the imposing purple alien, the ground being torn apart by his speed. Boros was completely unprepared for his new speed, Holocho's fist planting itself deep into the alien's gut before he registered what had happened. The hero pressed his advantage, landing several more blows before Boros managed to dodge to one side. He returned with a chain of punches, each much faster than before, but only managed to hit thin air.

"You're way too slow," Holocho gloated, no trace of strain in his voice as he dodged the alien's punches. Seeing an opening between Boros's attacks, Holocho lunged forward, his fist tearing into the cyclops's head. The alien gasped and staggered back, bleeding profusely. Holocho ruthlessly followed up in his attack, each of his punches releasing a shockwave, ripping apart the land around them, as they impacted the alien's body.

Boros sank to a knee, bleeding heavily from the deep holes littered across his body. "It looks like I underestimated your power," he said, his voice cracking with pain. His wound quickly knitted themselves back together. "But it is still not enough."

"Who said I was using all my power?" Holocho said incredulously.

Boros smiled fiercely. Moving in a blur, he sprang up, but his fist moved through the boy.

"An afterimage?"

Boros was struck from behind, sending him flying forward, but was stopped by another blow sending him back the way he came. He twisted and kicked at the boy, but his foot passed harmlessly through him. Another afterimage.

Suddenly, he was attacked simultaneously from all sides, wave punches tearing into and through his body like invisible stakes spearing a vampire. Around him, a circle of flickering afterimages formed.

"This is my Afterimage Typhoon!" Holocho shouted, his voice seeming to come from everywhere at once.

"Your speed is impressive," Boros acknowledged. His wounds had closed already.

"You haven't seen anything yet!" Holocho replied. Several afterimages darted in, attacking the alien at the same time, overwhelming him with a barrage of punches. To an ordinary person, it would have looked like several copies of Holocho were attacking Boros at once.

There was nothing the alien could do. The moment he tried to form some sort of defence, he was beaten down. Holocho's plan quickly became evident - he was slowly grinding the monster into a bloody pulp, his bare hands crushing the alien's body into pieces. But the alien wasn't defenceless. With a shout, expelled a wave of purple energy, propelling Holocho away from him. His afterimages flickered and disappeared, but he wasn't giving up that easily. Orienting himself midair, he launched himself back at the alien, tearing through the air faster than ever before. But instead of dealing another devastating blow, Boros casually sidestepped his attack.

"Wha-" Holocho started, but was forced to swerve to one side to avoid a lightning-fast punch. The duo began another deadly aerial dance, Holocho dodging and diving like a supersonic fighter jet, only much more agile and fast. He heard the sound barrier crack and shatter repeatedly as he weaved between the trees and rocks of the park. Boros was behind him, swooping around him, trying to land even a single punch. For now, even though he was the one being chased Holocho felt that he still had the upper hand. He just didn't want to waste energy trying to injure an enemy that just kept on regenerating. He had to come up with some sort of plan before Boros wore him down with his sheer ability not to die.

Suddenly, Boros appeared above him, purple energy crackling around him. Holocho frantically twisted, but he couldn't avoid the alien's fist. He felt the wind being knocked out of him as Boros's strike sent him barrelling into the ground for the second time.

"His speed…" Holocho thought, jumping out of the hole he'd made in the ground. "I'm still faster, but I've gotta be careful."

"Behind you!" Boros shouted in glee. Holocho backhanded him, sending him flying through several trees. "Why do villains always do that?"

He turned, searching for where Boros had flown off to. Without warning, the alien appeared behind him, striking hard in the head. The impact jarred Holocho.

He jumped away, twisting in the air and landing to face his opponent. He rubbed the back of his head. "Damn," he thought. "That actually hurt a bit."

Boros grinned viciously. "Let's stop messing around."

Holocho's mood instantly shifted. "You want to die."

"You're very arrogant. You will regret that." Boros said darkly, the grin remaining on his face.

Holocho glared at the alien. He was going to have to fight seriously against him, for the second time in his life as a hero. This alien was not one he could overcome easily, even if he unleashed all his strength. He may even have to face him as if he were Saitama.

* * *

Genos hovered high in the sky. They'd finally defeated the alien - thanks to Genos noticing the black orbs the alien regenerated around, the S class heroes were able to locate and crush them, killing the ever-regenerating alien. Now, led by the noise and havoc, he'd found where the real fight was taking place. Their fight with Melzargard was nothing compared to this. His cybernetic eyes were hard at work, trying their best to track the high-speed dogfight between Holocho and the mysterious powerful purple alien as they darted amidst the trees. Despite the various enhancements and upgrades he had had over the last months, he couldn't keep up with them. A particularly hard strike from one of the fighters sent large shockwaves racing through the air, jolting Genos and making him lose focus. As he regained his balance, he noticed another figure hovering in the air. Metal Knight.

Genos quickly flew over to the dark chrome-coloured drone.

"That's Brutal Tempest, Class A hero, correct?" Metal Knight asked through his drone. He didn't take his focus off the duel below.

Genos frowned. "Yes, he is."

"Did you know he was hiding such power?"

The teen cyborg didn't see any point in hiding the truth. "I did."

A series of loud clashes grabbed their attention. The two fighters below were now violently trading blows on the ground. Judging from the increase in speed from both Holocho and the alien, they were taking things up a level. The surrounding forest had already been blown away by the sheer force of their attacks.

The drone finally took its eyes and faced Genos. "Why did you not inform the Hero Association? A hero of such power is easily high-rank Class S. He would have been a great asset to the Association. Why did he himself not inform the Association?"

"He had expressed wishes to climb the rankings himself. He also only gained only Class B in the entrance test."

Metal Knight grunted and returned his attention to the fight. Holocho was brutally assaulting the alien, tearing holes into the alien with each punch.

"Another case of 'Metal Bat'. But this one's power far exceeds his. His intelligence must be low then ,but he would have aced the physical test. We need to make exceptions for anomalies like him." Metal Knight said, thinking out loud. "Perhaps we need to raise the score limit, but that's a thought for another time."

The scientist zoomed in the best he could on Holocho's fleeting form. The boy's speed and agility was now several times higher. For some reason, his fighting style seemed quite similar to Silverfang's.

* * *

Holocho's fists cracked through the air, each one punching clean through the alien's body. Blood spattered out from each wound, coating each of his gauntlets bright red. But it still wasn't enough. Holocho gritted his teeth. Why wouldn't this alien just die? With a fearsome punch, crushing Boros's head, he halted his attack. He was getting bored of simply pummelling him, and besides, apart from being stress-relieving, it was getting him nowhere. He had to rethink his strategy.

Before him, Boros's body regenerated. The alien chuckled. "Now do you realise it's pointless? You will only wear away, your body slowly crumbling under my attacks, but I will always regenerate myself. Look."

He gestured at his sparkling blue body. "Good as new."

"So what?" Holocho snarled. "You're nothing but a punching bag to me. I'll beat you until you can't regenerate any more."

Boros chuckled deeply, his eye closing in amusement. The boy facing him was strong, stronger than anything he'd fought before, so Boros didn't take much offence from his cockiness. But the alien still had a few tricks up his sleeve, one that would flip the boy's arrogance on its head.

"You say I'm your punching bag?" Boros said, eye now open and staring at Holocho with a startling intensity.

Holocho folded his arms across his chest and stared up at the alien. "Now that I'm actually trying, you're nothing to me."

"What if I told you… that this isn't even my final form?"

His worry about fighting the alien had evaporated once he'd started facing him seriously. Incorporating the tricks he'd learnt from Bang into his movement and fighting style, Holocho had suddenly become much more of a potent fighter. Before, he was doing the equivalent of running around and madly flailing his arms, but now he actually partially knew what he was doing.

But now his worry came crashing back, knocking him to his senses. In front of him, Boros crouched down, fists clenched by his sides. A jagged purple aura formed around him, lightning shooting out from his body. His energy formed an expanding purple dome around him, multiple blades of black lightning striking flickering into existence. In the centre of the dome, the alien completed his transformation into his final form. His body bleached, the light blue lines running down his body darkened and his white hair grew backwards, lengthening but retaining its spikiness.

Holocho took a step back, raising his arms into the now familiar fighting style. He frowned slightly. Behind the alien, he could see a group of people, one in particular seemed to be floating...

Boros slipped into a position similar to an athlete at the start of a 100m sprint, the dome of energy around him expelling tremendous amounts of light and power.

"Meteoric Burst!"

With a flash, the alien launched itself at the boy, energy dispelling behind him with a violent clap. His fist crashed into Holocho's hastily-formed block, sending the boy flying back. Searing purple energy erupted from his punch, disintegrating the park and city behind it.

A green energy barrier formed around the flying form of Boros, halting his movement, but he easily broke through, firing a deadly energy blast at S Class heroes trying to attack him from behind without looking back.

Holocho's cry of surprise caught in his throat as he frantically dodged Boros's flurry of attacks, avoiding them with a hair's breadth to spare. But he didn't escape unscathed - the energy behind each punch seared him even though no punches landed.

The boy knew that, if they were to fight, the city would definitely be destroyed. He jumped into the air, legs blurring with a newfound intensity. He crackled through the air, but before he could get far Boros had already caught up to him, smashing him back down towards the city.

He hissed in pain. The ground was already almost upon him, but he swerved up, managing to save himself from burying into the city again. Boros was already beside him. The pair powered through the city, each clash between them shattering glass and concrete. The sheer power radiating from Boros was tearing buildings apart as they flew.

Holocho twisted and turned, but wherever he flew Boros was already there, smashing him through buildings and into the street.

Around them, the city crumbled. Civilians were incinerated by the searing heat Boros's white form was giving out. Skyscrapers that took years to build were cut in half by a single punch.

"Why are you running?!" Boros shouted, as they duelled, his voice loud with delight and joy. "Come on, fight me! Don't let the death around you distract you! The city was doomed from the beginning!"

Holocho said nothing, rolling in the air to avoid one of Boros's energy-charged punches. He quickly snapped a few wave punches back at the Dominator to little effect.

Boros laughed. "Surely you're not scared of me, are you?"

Holocho suddenly screeched to a halt, twisting and planting a punch deep into the alien's gut. The explosive force behind his surprise attack shattered buildings around them and sent the alien hurtling backwards through the air.

The hero's face was dark. His fists trembled. "I'm not scared of you."

"I'll never be scared of you!" Holocho yelled, his voice cracking. He launched into a furious attack, tearing into Boros's body like he had no tomorrow. With a powerful downwards blow, he smashed the alien deep into the earth.

* * *

The S class heroes had never been so utterly defeated before. Each a monster in their own rights, these heroes had earned their right to be in the top of the top. But this single alien had managed to nearly destroy them all with a just single blast.

But the boy was still fighting him. They could feel the air tremor with each blow exchanged from their beds as they were flown away to hospital. But with each S class hero so severely burnt, they could only pray that a miracle would happen.

As the air shook from the most powerful blow yet, some started to despair.

* * *

Holocho heaved deep, painful breaths. Boros had managed to hit him several times. Trying to ignore the pain, he held his fist out in front of him. It still trembled, even as he tried with all his might, he could not get it to stay still.

"What is this?" Holocho thought, wiping away blood that had seeped through his many cuts and scratches that he'd sustained. "The pain doesn't surprise me, but this feeling… the fear…"

From within the crater came a deep, taunting laugh. "Do you realise it now, the futility of your struggle?"

The ground exploded with a column of purple energy shooting upwards through the debris into space. Boros floated upwards, his twisted and broken body restoring itself to prime condition.

He looked at the alien in despair.

Before he could react, Boros was behind him, driving home a punch that shook Holocho to the core. He staggered forward, but Boros reappeared in front of him with another painful punch. The alien didn't stop, hitting Holocho with an uppercut, sending him flying into the air. Holocho cringed in pain as Boros unleashed his most powerful attacks yet, hammering the boy from seemingly all directions at once.

Holocho felt dizzy from pain and his vision began to fade, but the relentless attack stopped, just for a moment. He could feel himself falling towards the ground, but his fall was interrupted by a knee driving deep into his gut. And his vision went dark.

* * *

He woke in a grey, dusty crater. His vision swam, threatening to plunge him back into darkness. The boy's eyes grew wide when he realised where he was - on the moon's service. He shot to his feet, pains and fears temporarily forgotten. He was where few men had gone before. Then his pain crashed back into him in giant waves, threatening to bring him to his knees. He had to get off the moon fast, or he would suffocate.

For a brief moment, his resolve wavered. What waited for him back on earth was a world of pain. But he shook his doubts away, even if he'd lost the fight, Saitama would be there to back him up.

Holocho crouched down, ready to jump back to Earth, but just before he did, he slipped a few moon pebbles into his breast pocket. They'd sell for a fortune back on earth.

* * *

It was eerily quiet on the battlefield. So quiet that Saitama finally realised that Holocho and the alien weren't fighting any more. The bald hero stood and walked over to peer down the hole they'd made on their way down. He gasped softly at the devastation below. City A once was full of tall, gleaming skyscrapers, but all he could see now was rubble. He could barely just make out the alien (who was now white for some reason) amongst the rubble, panting heavily. His concern grew as he realised that Holocho was nowhere to be seen, but an almighty crash from the heavens alleviated his fears.

* * *

Holocho could only feel pain. He hadn't realised how fast he was going until he was moments away from impacting the ground, resulting in him landing in a twisted fashion. He was sure a few bones were broken.

"You are simply incredible, boy."

Holocho grimaced.

"I struck you with a lethal blow, sending you deep into space, but you are here before me. Again."

The dust settled, revealing Boros's stark white form standing on the lip of the crater of Holocho's crash landing.

"But I ask you, why? Why do you still choose to fight? When it is shown to you that, no matter what you do, it is futile?"

Holocho stood painfully. His legs felt weak, but he forced himself to stand tall. "Because I want to win."

Boros shook his head. In a flash, he closed the distance between them, reaching out for the finishing blow. But he found his fist trapped, caught by the boy hero.

Holocho grinned weakly. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. "Checkmate."

He spun and threw Boros high into the air like a hammer toss.

"You fool!" Boros shouted. "I am just where I want to be!"

Blue lightning emerged from his shining white form, tearing apart whatever it touched. It grew rapidly in intensity, blotting out the sun.

"Oh god, he really is where he wants to be," Holocho thought in dread. He could feel Boros's energy pressing down on him, making him realise how much more powerful the alien was.

"You have shown yourself to be a worthy foe. For that I will give you a glimpse of my true power!" Boros shouted over the noise of him charging up. "Much of my energy will be released, blasting you and half your planet's surface into oblivion!"

Holocho's face darkened. Gusts of wind emanated from the alien, threatening to blow him off his feet. In the corner of his eye he could see two grey figures flying through the air. The sky darkened.

"Collapsing Star, Roaring Cannon!" Boros yelled, unleashing his ultimate attack. A blindingly bright beam of blue energy encased in yellow light powered downwards towards the planet's surface.

"Death Wave!" Holocho cried, unleashing his own ultimate attack. The strongest shockwave he'd ever produced sailed into the air, colliding with Boros's beam of light. It did nothing. Time slowed to a crawl. Holocho's mouth grew dry.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "You tried."

Holocho turned to see Saitama standing beside him, 3DS in hand.

"Hold this," he said, thrusting it into the boy's hands.

"Y-yeah…"

"Killer move, serious series: Serious Punch!"

The last thing Holocho could remember before blacking out was a shockwave, magnitudes more powerful than his, decimating Boros's attack.

* * *

"Has he woken up yet?"

"No."

"That is too bad. I had brought lobster soup for him, but now I will have to eat it myself."

"No!" Holocho shot up and grabbed the soup out of the person's hand and devoured the contents before they could react.

"Oh. He is awake."

Holocho sighed contently, looking up from the now clean container of soup. Before him, Genos stood, his hand slightly mangled from having the soup snatched out of his hands.

Saitama looked up from his console. "Okay."

"What? What happened? Where am I?" Holocho asked.

"You are in hospital recovering from your fight with the alien leader," Genos replied. "You had lost consciousness."

"Oh…"

Holocho noticed an envelope lying on a table beside the bed. It was addressed to him.

"Oh! Yes! Finally!" he exclaimed, tearing it open to reveal a certificate showing his promotion to class S.

"I got that as well," Saitama said.

Holocho laughed. "Neat! Didn't expect them to promote us so quickly though, don't they usually take a few days to process it or something?"

"The public were very insistent on your promotion," Genos stated. "Especially after seeing you and Saitama's fight against the alien. I live streamed it."

Holocho gazed down at the certificate and smiled. He'd done it at last.

* * *

A/N: It's finally finished. Took me long enough. This will be the last chapter of this fanfic. I hope you enjoyed it.

I'm planning on writing a fic based around King and his… ability next. But I don't know when that'll come out. Soon, I hope.

But in the meantime, stay safe and take care of yourselves. Bye for now.


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